Forgotten Prisoner
by LibertyBell.047
Summary: The Chunin exam took place one year before but Konoha's ennemies were already there. As usual then? No, because nobody and especially not the young ANBU Uzumaki Naruto had ever thought that the dead could raise again… FIC ADOPTED
1. Prologue

This fic' is a translation from my french story that you can find on my profile:  
Un Prisonnier Oublié

Enjoy!

Disclaimer: Naruto belongs Masashi Kishimoto

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_Forgotten Prisonner_

_Prologue_

_Night had just fallen; the forest was sinking in a sinister and eerie obscurity. But at this moment, woods were hiding something much more frightening than darkness. Sounds of battle, clashes of katanas and kunaïs and explosions were echoing in the dark green maze, punctuated by the dreadful screams of the dying humans. _

_The clearing, where an important group of missing nins had set up their camp, was the prey of flames. All these men and women were pushed back by only one ninja, an ANBU of Konoha. He was moving like a shadow, but with the speed of a flash, striking and killing the deserters._

_Gradually, the cries became less frequent until silence returned, only to be broken by the cracks of trees, eaten by the fire. Over one hundred shinobis, only one remained. Wearing the hitai-ate of the ninjas of Kaze No Kuni, he seemed to be the gang leader and had been the only one able to stand up to the young ANBU. _

_But the battle had lasted too long for him and his body gave up. He fell on the knees, clenching the fists. In a last dash of despair, he raised the head at least hoping to die with a semblance of dignity. But the last vision he had of this world froze him with horror._

_A few seconds before, he had managed to touch his enemy, which had taken off his mask. From the dark silhouette coming out of the flames, only two eyes, with slited pupils were visible. Their colour was dreadful; they were as red as the blood in which his companions laid. Flames were reflecting in these eyes, making them shine but at the same time they seemed so cold, so hard and lifeless. _

_The missing nin was paralyzed by terror. "Demon…" he whispered in a last breath, before falling in an eternal sleep._

_Ten meters from there, hidden behind the trees, three others shinobi had witnessed this horrible scene. They were also wearing the mask of ANBU and the symbol of Konoha-Gakure. During the battle, they had almost retained their breath, amazed at the power of their fourth fellow-member. One of them spoke with a voice which wanted to sound assured but where a note of anguish was perceptible._

"_Taichou… shouldn't we help him?"_

_The man he was speaking to, shook the head negatively. "No, follow the orders. Go with him, watch him but only help him in case of major danger-"_

"_And let him do all the dirty work." the third person cut. It was a woman who had spoken and her voice expressed anger._

_He didn't answer, he understood her aggressive tone. Although they were ninja, trained to be insensible to any emotion, from the bottom of his heart, he also hated this mission._

"_It's inhuman…" the kunoichi continued._

_He simply nodded but inside, he was hesitant. For the first time, he was questioning the legitimacy of his mission, the value of the orders he received and above all, the worth of those who gave them. But his sense of duty quickly came back and he turned away to observe his team mate._

_The small silhouette was standing in front of the last victim, having just finished him off. __Rain was now falling heavily, cleaning the bloodied grounds and putting out the last flames. As if it was kindly erasing the lasts signs of the fight. Despite this rain shower, the young ANBU did not move, he remained standing in the middle of the clearing whereas water streamed on his face._

_Then he heard his captain calling him. "Good work, mission is over now, let's go back." He did not answer. He only took back his mask before following the rest of his team when they dashed into the trees._

_---------------------------_

_Rain fell over Konoha-Gakure. In his office, an old man looked at his village, sometimes hidden by a droplet silently sliding on the window. Eyes' staring into space, Sandaime was taking the rare pleasure of contemplating Konoha while forgetting for a moment the mountain of daily wretched paper which was spreading out on the table. He let out a heavy sigh; in fact he was all but relaxed. Anxious, he was waiting for a certain team of ANBU, which should return this evening of an S-rank mission. _

_It was not the risks threatening the ninjas that worried him, he knew that they were more than competent and would carry out this mission without failing. No, what frightened him were more the ninjas which constituted this team. And more particularly the youngest of them. For a long time he had watched him without being able to help him and every day, remorse and regrets were penetrating a little more into his soul._

_His reflections were interrupted by the arrival of his assistant. "Hokage-sama, team Ryû has just arrived." _

_Although he had prepared himself for that, a new wave of anxiety submerged him but he didn't let it appear. "Very well, let them come in." While he sat down again in his armchair, four shinobi appeared. Sandaime looked at them one by one, there was the leader Ryû, then a new recruit Nezumi, a kunoichi veteran Tora, and - his glance went down- Kitsune. (1) _

_His clothes were the most damaged, stained with red in some places; they had also a little darkened, as if they had crossed a wall of flames. With difficulty, he looked away to face the captain of the team._

_"Ryû, let me hear your report."_

_"Hai. The mission has been completed without any problem, at first; we followed the missing nins ' gathering. Indeed, it seemed that their plan was to attack every village which had exiled them, beginning with __Suna-Gakure. Taking in account that they were quite numerous, it could have quickly become a serious threat. But we mana... well, they were all eliminated. »_

_Ryû had made a slight break, involuntarily turning his gaze to his small team-mate. That was noticed by the Hokage._

_"Thank you. You did good job, you are now dismissed." _

_"Hai." They bowed, before leaving the room._

_"Not you Kistune, I would like to have a talk." The young ninja nodded and returned in front of the Hokage's desk. "Could you take off your mask?" The old man quietly asked._

_"Of course, Hokage-sama." he answered in a flat voice._

_He removed his mask, letting his wild blond locks fall again over his forehead. Sarutobi contemplated the face of his… or rather the one who should have been his protégé. Behind the mask was hidden a face still so young, but which had never been enlightened with childish emotion. His cheeks were streaked by thin scars, proofs of his past, unknown but incredible._

_His blond hair was a mess, as usual. Sandaime almost smiled, thinking of a certain person it reminded him, but his smile faded when their glances crossed. These eyes… he couldn't bear to look these red eyes which were the proof of his failure. Despite his confusion, he tried to put up a good show._

_"So, tell me Naruto, aren't you tired from your mission?" _

_"No, Hokage-sama."_

_He almost sighed. "Yon don't need to always add me this title, you know "-I am so unworthy of it- he thought at the same time._

_Naruto slightly frowned, showing his incomprehension. "You are the leader of this village Hokage-sama. I am at your service and I must show respect and obedience." He explained, in an indifferent tone._

_Sarutobi closed his eyes. How many times had he heard it, that litany, learnt and repeated by heart … It demoralized him, but he did not want to get angry, not in front of him. After so many tries, he had never managed to repair the damages this cursed Council had made on the young ninja's mind._

_As soon as the Kyûbi had been sealed in him and immediately after the death of Yondaime, the Council members had decided that the boy would become the village's most powerful weapon. When Sarutobi had been released from the hospital, several weeks after the attack of the devil-fox, it was already too late. _

_He had tried to take back the child, but the Council had asked for the Daimyô's opinion and unfortunately, they had received his support. He was now bounded by the law. _

_Since, he had only been a witness of his education and training. Every time he saw him, he regretted it a little more. The child had neither become the joyful young boy that he should have been, nor the bloodthirsty monster that all the villagers feared, Sandaime would have almost preferred it. Instead of that, he became what the Council had made of him. A ninja. A human being who had no more feelings._

_"Hokage-sama?" The young ANBU had somehow perceived his distress but he called him without showing the slightest interest. _

_"Oh sorry, I was thinking about something else." _

_"You do not have to justify yourself-" _

_"All right." He cut him before hearing this 'Hokage-sama' which discouraged him so much, what his interlocutor did not seem to realize. "This mission was hard, I guess that you've taken care of all those ninjas by yourself, how are you feeling?" He says, hoping for a different answer._

_Unfortunately, this kind of discussion was foreign to the boy. He stopped it politely. "With your permission, Sandaime-sama, I am going to train until the next mission." _

_"No! You have to rest. That… This is an order, Kitsune." He says as a last resort, knowing that nothing else could prevent him from training._

_He did not protest "As you wish, Hokage-sama." He bowed before leaving, putting back his mask._

_The old man was now leaning against the back of his armchair and closed painfully his eyes, whispering words to his only memories.__"Ten years… ten years already my friend, and what have I done all this time…"_

_--------_

_On the other hand, the young ninja had returned at his house. After a quick shower, he changed his clothes and then sat down on his bed, his back resting against the wall. He was not really sleepy, but he had received an order from Sandaime and thus had to execute it._

_He had been, as usual, slightly surprised by the attitude of the Hokage. He simply did not understand either the meaning of his words or the tone of his voice when he spoke to him. And he did not try to understand. _

_The red eyes fixed the window in front of his bed. For a moment, he watched the rain falling as the Hokage did a little before, but unlike him, he felt no particular emotion. _

_He brought a knee close to his chest and just put the head above. After a short while, the young boy fell asleep, sinking into a dreamless sleep._

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First impressions?  
how's the english? it's not my mother tongue and sometimes i'm not sure of the grammar

The french version is already at chapter 6, I'll try to update as soon as possible^^

(1) Ryû: Dragon  
Nezumi: Mouse  
Tora: Tiger  
Kitsune: Fox

See ya!


	2. Chap 1: Preparing

Chapter 1, done!

thanks to InARealPickle for the review and the help^^

enjoy!  
disclaimer: Naruto belongs to Masashi Kishimoto

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Forgotten Prisoner

Chapter 1: Preparing

---One year later---

The village was in a fever of excitement, for the first time in seven years the Chunin Exam was taking place in Konoha. The Hokage had made an announcement the previous day and there was now only one week until the finale. Besides the preliminary were organised at this moment in the forest of the Fire Country. This event had promised to be particularly memorable because the visit of two other Kages, those of Mizu and Kaze as well as the visit of their Daimyo was announced.

The stadium, where had to take place the last part of the Exam, had not been used for a moment and the Academy students were asked to put it back in optimal conditions. The children, happy to miss a few days of class were doing their work, discussing about the Exam.

In the middle of the arena, the class of Iruka was in charge of the wall cleaning and had to prepare the grounds. A young boy, with a dog on the head, was loudly complaining.

"What a drag! We're ninjas, why are we obliged to do that? They should better let us participate to this exam!"

Another student answered him, while eating his chips. "But Kiba, you know that we are not even Genin…"

"Ah shut up Chôji! So what?" Kiba got excited; he began to make large movements with the arms. "I'm sure that with Akamaru we could kick their ass, all of them!" Saying that, he mimed a punch which sent his sponge flying. It passed in front of a yawning boy which did not really disturb him, and landed on a blond head.

A surprised and piercing scream was heard in the arena. "Kyaa, what's that?" She saw the wet sponge falling on the ground and her nose wrinkled with disgust.

"Sorry Ino!" She heard "It was a accident!"

"Baka!! You're going to regret it!" She took the sponge and threw it back, aiming for the head. The sleepy boy saw it fly again but didn't take much more interest in it. Kiba bend and manage to avoid it but as a result, his dog received the blow. "Aaah sorry Akamaru! I forgot you were- ouch! Sorry!" The boy tried to apologize while the puppy was scratching his head.

"Ha, you deserved that!" Ino said.a "You shouldn't have thrown that disgusting thing on an pretty girl."

Besides her, a pink haired girl chuckled. "Where do you see a pretty girl, Ino-buta?"

As an answer she received a soaked floor cloth in the face, accompanied with a sarcastic laugh. "Well, not in front of me Deko deko-chan ".

Another girl behind shyly approached them. "Ano, Sakura-san do you want to use this?" She asked, holding a clean handkerchief.

"Thanks Hinata." She quickly wiped her face, and counter attacked.. "Oh really? At least I'm still more attractive than you, don't you think so Sasuke-kun?" She turned to a dark haired boy who did not grant her the slightest attention. But it did not discourage his fan.

"See, Ino!"

"You're dreaming Sakura! He didn't say anything. Because it's me he prefers!"

"Ino-buta!"

"Deko deko-chan!" The quarrel continued while in the middle of the stadium, in an attempt to calm down Akamaru, Kiba was running and knocking down almost all the buckets,

Leaning against the wall, were Shikamaru and Chôji soon joined by Hinata. "We're not going to do something?"

"Forget it." The young Nara answered. "They'll calm down when their stomachs will take over their brain. Ask Choji." They were quietly observing the battle which was now including the quasi-totality of their class when their professor arrived.

"ENOUGH!" Hearing the irritated voice of Iruka, the students suddenly freeze. He came by the group of children and separated the girls who were still pulling each one's hair.

"What is going on here?"

"Ino began, Sensei!"

"Liar, you laughed first! "

"That's enough now girls." He sighed when they crossed arms and turn back with an angry 'Hn'.

"Okay, let's do a quick break, it's already noon." Hearing that, the students seemed delighted; they sat down together and began to eat.

"See." Shikamaru said to Hinata who chuckled.

Iruka also sat down among his students and despite of the noise, he congratulated them for the work done. Suddenly he heard the piercing voice of Ino who was pointing the stands."Ne, Iruka-sensei! There's somebody who's watching us up there."

The Chûnin turned round and indeed, he saw a dark silhouette which was observing them, him more precisely. "Ah I see, that must be the ninja who has to report on the march of the repairs." He stood up and went out of the group. But while the ninja went out of the shadow, Iruka saw his blond hair and then recognized the young boy.

He had heard many stories about him in the rooms reserved for Chûnins and Jounins and had crossed his path on several occasions. Each time, he had felt a feeling of anxiety and he was wondering why the Hokage had allowed a child to follow a road so dangerous and lonely. According to what he had heard, the boy was already an ANBU and carried out high ranked missions. Iruka also knew that he was the jinchuuriki of the demon fox. He could have hated him, as so many others did. But when he saw him, he could not refrain a feeling of sorrow and compassion. Even if he did not really knew why.

Then Iruka saw the young ninja jump of the balcony and land in front of him. Behind him, his curious students followed the scene and seemed a bit confused when they saw that the ninja was also a child.

Today Naruto did not wear his usual armour of ANBU, Hokage's order. He was dressed with a black T-shirt with the symbol of the leaf on the shoulder and black pants with red strips on both sides. Sandaime had discreetly given him this mission, hoping that he could meet the children, something that the Council had always tried to avoid.

"Hello." Iruka said with a smile, trying not to look away under the gaze of these unbearable red eyes.

He did not answer but slightly bowed the head in sign of respect. "I come on behalf of Hokage-sama, how are you doing with the repairs?"

"As you can see, they're quite advanced." He had hesitated a moment, but finally he decided to treat him like one of his students. He indicated him the different places which were already restored. "Walls are almost finished as well as the grounds. Those in charge of the stands are almost done too and there is still the Hokages' balcony." To show him that, he had to turn round and they were now facing the group of students.

The mutterings suddenly stopped during a few seconds when the future genins discovered his face. Then they started again more slowly but Iruka could sense the apprehension and the confusion they were expressing.

"You saw that Ino? He has red eyes..." Sakura whispered, shivering. "Who is it?" She asked, turning to Sasuke.

"I don't know."

Besides him, Kiba was holding Akamaru but curiously, the little dog seemed to be the only one not frightened.

"I've never seen him at the Academy, maybe he came from abroad?" Chôji asked, not eating for once.

"I don't think so. Look he's wearing the symbol of the Leaf, he's a ninja of Konoha." Shikamaru said, having lost for once his casual tone. "I do not know why, but his voice… it makes me feel uneasy…" They silently nodded, sharing the same feeling. Some of them couldn't move, they were literally paralyzed and could not look away from these eyes which had no expression, no life.

They listened when their Sensei spoke again. "Tomorrow, everything should be finished."

"Understood." Hearing again his voice, they shuddered. That was not the voice a child should have, hard and so indifferent.

Naruto seemed on the verge of leaving but his interlocutor stopped him by putting a hand on his shoulder. "Wait, did you already have lunch?"

He shook negatively the head. "Then would you like to eat with us?" Naruto let appear a slight look of incomprehension. This person was acting exactly like the Hokage, suddenly talking about something else, not about the mission. He was asking questions about him, seeking his opinion and he was not used to this kind of behaviour.

He moved back, freeing himself from Iruka's hold. He bowed the head. "I am going to make my report."

The young boy turned back to the group. He jumped on the balustrade disappeared from their sight.

The chûnin sighed, now he knew why the young ninja gave him such a feeling of pity, he could read it in his gaze. When he had suggested him to share their lunch, he had not understood. It was a simple as that. But it said a lot about the education he had received. When he returned, he was assailed by the students.

"Iruka-sensei, who was he?"

"Is he from Konoha?"

"Why does he have this kind of eyes?"

"Hey, calm down. To answer your questions, yes he lives in Konoha like you. I think that his name is Naruto"

"Naruto? Funny name." Chôji pointed out.

"You're the one to talk... He seems to have our age, why is he not at the Academy?" A perplexed Shikamaru asked.

Iruka tried to answer him without revealing them the truth, not all the truth at least. "Hm he was taken in charge by the Council members, for particular reasons let's say. But I don't really know much more."

"Sure he looks special." Kiba said. "Did you saw his eyes?!"

Sakura, Ino and some others added their opinion. "Yeah blood red, awful.", "I never thought it could exist.", "He had the look of a monst-"

"BE QUIET!" The pupils freeze, surprised. "Don't speak like about people when you know nothing of their life. I am really disappointed by this kind of attitude."

Their heads lowered a bit, they seemed a little shameful, especially the girls. "Sorry." He heard. As he saw them demoralized, Iruka sighed, but a small smile of comfort appeared on his lips. "If you've understand that, then it's okay. You'd better hurry now, the break is over and you must finish the job for this evening. "

He left, laughing under the indignant glances and the plaintive whispers of his students. After that, they got back to their work but the joyful atmosphere which had reigned a little before in the arena had slightly darkened.

------------------------------------------

For its part, Naruto was going back to the Hokage Tower, jumping on the roofs. He was thinking again about his brief encounter with the group of students. In fact, if Ino had managed to locate him, it was only because he had decided to show himself, as he was already there for a while. He had waited for the arrival of their Sensei and had observed them. Not really because he was curious but simply because he had nothing else to do.

He saw big smiles appeared on their faces while they were laughing together and throwing soaked sponges at each other. It was not the first time which he had witnessed this kind of scene, sometimes in the streets some other children were also playing like that. Each time, he wondered why they were allowed to do that, even if they were working as now.

He was also surprised by the fact that their Sensei had not punished them for their strange behaviour. But again, he hadn't been asked to watch them, or to report of their attitude, so he didn't say anything.

The young ANBU saw that, indeed there was a clear difference between him and these children, although they were the same age. But it did not affect him, it was not important as long as he could carry out his mission; even it was as simple as this one. He was their ultimate weapon, at least he knew that. He had to be different. Those who had trained him had always repeated that and as a ninja he obeyed to his superiors without discussing.

While Naruto was thinking about the Academy's students, a sudden pain shot through his heart, making him stop. As trained as he was, he did not panic; he never did.

He calmed down and closed his eyes, trying to find the origin of this pain. At this moment he was like drowning into darkness, he felt that the sounds; smells and all the other sensations of the outside world became blurred.

The young ANBU made a handseal."Kaï" he whispered, but nothing changed. So he deduced that it was not a genjutsu and remained motionless, preparing himself for what was going to happen whereas his sense of touch was also disappearing.

Suddenly he heard a whisper, as if it was an inner voice.

…ree…fr…ee… free… free…me…

This echo resounded, making his head spin. He had never heard such a deep and intrusive voice. During a short moment, he did nothing, and only listened to these words which had absolutely no meaning for him. A strange idea almost came to his mind, maybe he could stay like that, without reacting. But his reflexes of ninja took over. In his head, it seemed to him that the voice faded whereas he was mentally fighting it, refusing to listen more.

Suddenly he open his eyes, his senses waking up to the reality and he stayed still for a few seconds, slowly becoming used to it again. Strangely, this experience left him panting and he was taking deep breaths as if he had just run a long distance. The pain which had crossed his chest was gradually weakening and when it disappeared, he stood up.

It was the first time he experienced this kind of event and he didn't have the slightest idea of its origin or its nature. Although he searched through his memory and review all the jutsus he knew, he did not find one which corresponded. He decided that it was probably necessary to inform the Hokage about this and now that he had recovered, he left at a quick pace towards the tower.

------------------------

A few minutes later, Naruto arrived in front of the office but when he knocked at the door nobody answered. He saw the Hokage's assistant coming. "Sandaime-sama is not here, he has left to join the Chûnin candidates. What do you want?" Although he was directly speaking to him, the shinobi had diverted his eyes and had adopted a cold expression.

"Mission report. The arena should be ready by tomorrow."

"Very well, I will transmit. Something else?" He asked when he saw that the young ninja was not leaving.

"Confidential" He answered, knowing that the Council wanted to keep secret any of his personal information.

That didn't please the ninja, who was already reluctant to talk to him. "Who do you think you're speaking to? I'm Sandaime-sama's personal assistant, and therefore your immediate superior. You must tell me!"

Naruto didn't even blink and he answered with the same uninterested voice. "Confidential."

Their glances crossed. Anger and hatred were clearly visible in the green eyes of the shinobi. "Don't take this kind of arrogant look in front of me, you monster…" he whispered. "Your place is not he-"

"Enough now."

The ninja was surprised by this intervention but he didn't stopped when he turn round. "Who- Danzou-sama!"

His self-confidence suddenly melted like snow in summer when he faced the counsellor. "Hm… Danzou-sama… I… er…"

"Don't talk unnecessarily. You can go now, I'll take care of the rest."

"Ha…Hai." Saying that, he bowed in front of the old man. After giving Naruto a last despising glare, he left.

The young ANBU had knelt down, a fist on the ground in front of the counsellor. "What are you doing here Kitsune?"

"Hokage-sama gave me a mission-"

Danzou frowned, he was not aware of that.

"-at the stadium that the Academy students are repairing."

"He dared…" he whispered for himself.

It was very important; the young ninja should meet the other children. Even if the risk of a rebellion was highly improbable, he did not want Naruto to question himself. The fact that the Hokage had secretly tried to go against the Council in spite of their decisions did not pleased him, he would have to inform the Daimyô about that.

"Did something happen?"

"Yes. When I was coming back, there was moment when I lost all my senses. At the same time, I got the impression that I was hearing an inner voice."

"A genjutsu?"

"No, I didn't sense the presence of an enemy."

"What have you heard?"

"_Free me."_

The counsellor's hand tightened on his stick, the risk had just increased. He had feared this moment, because it meant that the seal was really fading and he couldn't reinforce it by himself. Nobody had been able to do it for several years. All he could do now, was prevent it from weakening more.

"Good, I will tell the Hokage myself. There is no need to worry more on that subject, understood?"

"Haï, Danzou-sama."

"From now, this kind of mission is forbidden. As well as these clothes, you will always have to wear your ANBU uniform."

"Haï."

"You are dismissed. Go back to your training."

The young ninja bowed his head a last time and then disappear in a little cloud of smoke.

The Council member stayed there for a while, his only valid eye was intensely looking at the door of the Hokage's office. Contrary to what the old Sandaime might thought, he wasn't aiming for his position. He was aiming for power. And he was already holding it. As long as the fox demon would be under his control, he would hold it.

He thought about the seal, his future was linked to its and if one day, it broke, he would lose everything. Luckily, his ally was powerful. While his was going back to his living quarters, he thought about the plan he would have to develop with the Daimyô.

TBC...

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for the japanese trad, well the only words are haï and baka  
not really useful...

so? how was this chapter?  
reviews and advices about the writing are always appreciated^^

See ya!


	3. Chap 2: Exam and Invaders

Chap 3! Finally tanslated!!

this is the second update  
in the first one, there were some femch words left  
I missed them when I re-read the chap, sorry about that.

thanks for all the reviews, and the adds in communities!  
hope you`ll like this chapter^^

Disclaimer: Naruto belongs to Masashi Kishimoto

_

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__Chapter2_

_Exam and Invaders_

---One week later---

The streets of Konoha were empty, almost everybody had gathered in the arena to watch the Chûnin Exam's fights. The actual duel, a ninja of Konoha vs one of Kiri, seemed to be ending. They were both two exhausted but the shinobi of Mizu was able to create a jutsu Suiton in which he threw his last energy and he managed to defeat his opponent.

The winner's name was then announced by the referee, under the cheering of the crowds. Among the spectators, there were some of the Academy students and they were enthusiastically commenting the match while making bets on the future victories.

On the Kage's balcony, Sandaime was also conversing with his colleagues. He was seating between them, the Mizukage on his right and the Kazekage on the left; the Daimyô, as well as three other Council members, includind Danzou, were facing them, on the other side of the arena.

"They fought really well, it was a beautiful duel." The Mizukage said.

"As well as a beautiful victory." A diplomatic Sarutobi added.

"Certainly, but I must admit that I had doubts on the fight's outcome till the very end. Your shinobi are well trained."

"And moreover, this one seemed quite young" The Kazekage said.

Before Sandaime could answer, the Kage of Kiri-Gakure spoke again. "Yes, they are becoming younger each time, here.

Saying that, he slightly turned the head, looking somewhere behind Sandaime who froze at this moment. He new fairly well about the one he was speaking of. Sarutobi chose to not answer, and focused back and the following match.

The three Kages were of course extremely well protected, by ANBU especially and the brigade's captain had chosen one of the best to be the inner circle: Kitsune.

The old man thought again about the 'discussion' he had had with the Daiymô, a few days ago. The lord had come with Danzou, who brought alarming news.

He had heard the traditional speech about 'You must absolutely not leave the fox demon alone and above all, not let him come near the civilian, what will you do if he rebels? You must keep a close watch…' and so on…  
But this time, a new problem had appeared.

To become Hokage, a ninja had to receive the Daimyô's approval added to the one of the Council and the old lord who was now holding reins of government had threaten him to ask his discharge if he didn't agree. If it was only that, Sarutobi could have easily accepted it but in this case, his successor would have been Danzou. As much as this choice had been hard to make, he could not let such a corrupted man rule the great Country of Fire. And on the other side, he could not declare war to the Daimyô.

Something else was now preoccupying him. According to Danzou, the seal, keeping Kyûbi prisoner, seemed too weakened. It meant that a new threat had just appeared and he was worrying for Naruto. Although he was Hokage, he too wasn't able to consolidate this particular seal.

Since the young boy's last mission, he did not really got a chance to talk to him properly. They had just exchange a few words before the beginning of the fights and Sandaime had recommended him to block his mind against that traitorous voice.

Suddenly, the old Hokage was pulled away from his reflexions. He saw a rain of white feathers coming from the sky and while the cheers were fading, all the villagers slowly fell asleep. He was surprised a short instant but he quickly pulled himself together and made a handseal.

"KAI !" Two voices shouted. The feathers immediately shattered, freeing them from the genjutsu.

"Thank you Kitsune." The Hokage added. « Go help your team to find the culprit, I'll take care of the situation over here."

The young ninja jumped straight away on the balustrade, then over the roof and joined the ANBU teams who had gathered outside the arena. He arrived just in time to hear the last explanations given by Ryû.

"-origin unknown, there's no other choice than search the village. Keep a close watch on the ninjas of Kaze and Mizu, there is this possibility. Try to avoid killing, what we need first is information. Let's go by groups of two, regular teams. If you find something, report to me or to Sandaime-sama. Go!"

The masked shinobis scattered. Naruto left again, with his team mate Risu (1) this time and they quickly decided to check on the ANBU headquarters. To go there, they had to pass near the arena but as Risu was running ahead, something caught Kitsune's attention and forced him to go back.

------At the same time------

On the Hokage's balcony, there were only two people, the Mizukage had left to join and gather his ninjas. Sandaime had stood up and was going to give his orders to the Jounins who were patrolling in the stands. He had just sent Naruto to find the culprits when he heard a voice behind him. "There is no need to search really far Sarutobi." A kunaï appeared, threatening his neck. The Hokage froze; he hadn't sense his presence before hearing him. "So you are the perpetrator of this attack… Kazekage-dono."

These words made him laugh and right away the voice seemed to change. "Yes and no, Sensei." The old man recognised too well the voice of his former student. "Orochimaru…"

The Hokage could have freed himself at this moment but before that, he wanted to know what the snake-ninja was planning. Therefore he did not resist when Orochimaru jumped on the roof, taking off his robe of Hokage. A soon as their feet touched back the ground, the four of the Sound revealed themselves and began their justu. "Ninpô: Shishi Enjin (2)."

A purple barrier immediately appeared, isolating the two shinobi. Sandaime felt that the fight was unavoidable and also took off his official clothes of Kage. He freed himself from his hold and faced him, taking a fighting stance.

"Orochimaru, stupid disciple. I always thought that this day would come but you will not take my life so easily."

"I already told you that, you should have name the fifth Hokage before, Sandaime. Because you are going to di-"

He didn't have time to finish. A kunaï, wrapped in an explosive note, was flying straight to him and he barely managed to dodge it. The weapon stuck in a tile, creating an explosion which forced the ninja to move back. This attack had surprise them, both of them, because they hadn't moved yet.

"Sandaime! What did you do?" The Hokage was not really able to answer because he had not the slightest idea bout its origin.

Suddenly the two ninjas saw a dark flash falling from the sky, it stopped in front of Sarutobi, facing the Sannin.

"Naruto!" The Hokage cried out.

"How… a kid." Orochimaru whispered. "No, an ANBU… but when did he enter ? Who are you ?!"

"Kitsune. I will protect Hokage-sama." The blond haired ninja replied, getting out a katana. The tone of his voice interested the Sannin. It was expressing neither loyalty, nor some kind of will, it was just the respect of an order.

"No Naruto, wait!" The Hokage tried to stop him but it was too late, the young ANBU had already dashed forward, aiming for the snake-ninja. This one had just enough time to draw his own sword Kusanagi to block the blow. The blades crossed with so much force that the shock created some sparks. The two shinobi stayed still for a few seconds, none of them being able to overpower the other. In a same move, they let go and sprang back.

Naruto held his katana more tightly and prepared his jutsu. "Konoha Ryû: Taiyô no Maï !"(3)

Orochimaru saw his opponent swoop down on him. Suddenly multiples images of the boy appeared and for a short instant, he lost the real one. Behind him, the young ANBU attacked with the sun in his back. But the Sannin had felt his presence and manage to push him back.

"_Incredible. For a kid… being able to execute so such a technique… I must know who is this child._" The two ninjas then exchanged a few hits and parades.

Sarutobi decided to help his protector and while his hands flashed into a serie of seals, he prepared his jutsu. It was a wide range attack but Naruto knew it and would be able to dodge it. "Shuriken Kagebunshin no Jutsu." (4)

The shuriken he had thrown was now lost among a huge number of its copies. Each one was really consistent and was aiming for the Sannin. Naruto saw them coming but he wanted to try a last attack before retreating and once again, he ran toward his enemy.

On the other hand, Orochimaru saw the situation was now becoming truly dangerous for him and as his hands made the necessary seals, his sword Kusanagi suddenly extended, aiming for the young ANBU. Naruto was surprised by this movement and he turned his katana just in time.

The plane face of the weapon received the impact but it was so powerful that it made him went back and even craked his sword. The snake-ninja managed to get a little bit of time and, putting his hands on the ground, he casted his jutsu. "Kuchiyose: Edo Tensei." (5)

Planks appeared from the ground and protected the Sannin against the deadly shurikens. But Sarutobi quickly saw that it was something far more dreadful than simple pieces of wood. A coffin. And there were three of them.

Sandaime clutched his fists, now realizing that his former student had just done a kinjutsu and that once again, he was playing with death. On the coffins were engraved kanjis of numbers: Ichi (one), Ni (two), and Yon (four).

They suddenly opened. The front part of the coffins was falling on the ground in clouds of smoke and dust. Orochimaru glanced at his sensei and a feeling of triumph could be read in his eyes. "You can thank me for this little reunion, _San_daime Hokage-sama."

Sarutobi began to understand the meaning of his insidious words and he looked, horrified, as the silhouettes of the previous Hokages were coming out of the smoke. However, he felt something when he listened them talking. It was the first time since long that he heard the voices of his sensei and deshi (apprentice).

"It's been a while, Saru." Shodaime said.

"Oh it's you? You've really got older Sarutobi." Nidame added.

"You think so? For me, you're still the same, Jiji." Yondaime said.

This situation was kind of paradoxal. The old Hokage had the feeling he was drifitng between past and present. The words and tone of his predecessors -and successor- seemed quite casual as if they weren't talking in the middle of a fight. He was a little bit shocked by their reappearence and was hesitant to answer when he sensed a presence at his right and saw a blond haired head.

"Hokage-sama. What is happening?"

_Naruto!_ He was so much worrying about this new jutsu that he had almost forgot he wasn't alone either.

"Kitsune, listen to me. Orochimaru has just done a kinjutsu which has revived the three previous Hokages."

Hearing that, the young ANBU quickly turned round to face their enemy but Sandaime didn't stopped. "No, listen, even if it is their true body their minds are being controlled and they are binded by Orochimaru's will. I know that your duty is to protect the one who posess the title of Hokage but you must trust me and help me to defeat them. As much as I regret it, we have to send them back in the other world... Nobody should play with the deads." He finished, sending an angry glare at his former student.

Kitsune didn't move for a few seconds but when he spoke, Sandaime felt relieved and for once, he was glad to hear those words. "As you wish, Hokage-sama."

On the other side, the trio of Hokage continued their discussion. "Edo Tensei?" Nidaime said. "It means that this kid summoned us with a forbidden jutsu? Quite impressive."

"Is it you Orochimaru?" Yondaime asked, reconnizing the ninja. "A Sannin of Konha who invade is own village, really..."

"If it's the case Sarutobi, we have to fight." Shodaime annonced.

"Enough chatting old man." The snake-ninja said. He came near the Hokages and in their bodies, he placed a kunaï which was tied to a note covered with kanjis.

"Let's begin then. Sarutobi-sensei, if I were you, I wouldn't rely too much on the brat's help. What could he do against Hokage-level shinobis?"

"You would be surprised by what the Leaf's new generation is capable of, Orochimaru." The old man answered.

He was trying to sound confident but inside, he was a little worried. He knew that Naruto was strong, incredibly strong in fact for a ninja so young. But it was probably not enough to rivaliser with the Hokages who had created Konoha and the one who had defeated Kyûbi.

However, he had no other choice. Any help was welcome against so powerful ennemies because even if he was Hokage, a three to one would not give him the best probability of victory.

In front of him, he saw the Sannin smile and send the summoned Hokages to attack. "Go. Shodaime, Nidaime, I'll leave you your former student. Yondaime, you take care of the brat." The three great ninja suddenly dashed, each one of them focused on his prey.

Shodaime attacked first, quickly followed by Nidaime but Sarutobi was still able to counter this kind of taijutsu and he forces his enemies to move back.

"My turn now!" He said as his hands were flashing into a serie of seals. "Katon: Karyû Endan!" (6) A powerful burst of flammes came out from his mouth and it surrounded the two Hokages. The fire was so hot that it seemed almost white, but Nidaime counter-attacked with a water technique. "Suiton: Suijinheki." (7)

A liquid barrier appeared and put out the fire, creating a huge cloud of steam. As soon as it disappeared, Nidaime used a second jutsu. "Suiton: Suishouha" (8) and formed an enormous wave which lauched toward Sandaime. But before it reached him, he protected himself with a defensive technique. "Doton: Doryûheki." (9) The wave crashed on the hard wall which had emerged from the ground.

Sarutobi had just landed on the water, at a safe distance from his enemies, when he heared the voice of the Yondaime annoncing the name of a technique he was fearing. "Hiraishin no jutsu!" (10)

-----A few seconds before------

Naruto went back in a fighting stance when he saw the Hokage coming. This one had taken a kunaï from his pouch and by sending chakra into his legs, he suddenly accelerated.

The clash between the steel weapons produce a clear note which resonated inside the violet barrière. They exchenged a few hits at high speed. An exterior witness would only have seen two yellow flashes. The two ninjas could have appeared of equal strenght but when they landed, it was clear that Yondaime had the upper hand. He did not even seemed out of breath, whereas Naruto was already panting.

The young ANBU took a deep breath and then decided to use a dangerous move. He held hiss katana with two hands, reducing his defense and placed the weapon at eye's level. He send half of his chakra into his legs, the other half into his sword and executed his technique. "Kaze Tsurugi ni Jutsu." (11) The katana glowed in a blue light and Naruto dashed again, aiming for the Yondaime.

The Hokage seemed a bit surprised by the high speed but he wasn't unworthy of his title, the Yellow Flash. He made a quick handseal and two kunaïs appeared in his hands. He crossed them in front of him and managed to block the katana. At least he thought so because he felt a burn on his torso; the blade had touched him quite deeply.

Only a few ninjas had managed to wound him like that and despite the events, he admired his young enemy.

Because of the clash, the katana of Naruto, already cracked, broke into two pieces, as well as Yondaime's kunaïs. The boy froze, feeling a little desorientated because of the sudden and intense use of chakra. The Hokage didn't left him time to rest and he used an other technique. "Katon: Hosenka no Jutsu." (12) Several fireballs came out from his mouth and they flew straight toward Naruto.

The technique was perfectly mastered and the size of the orbs of fire was impressive. The young ANBU didn't knew any jutsu Suiton like Nidaime which could have protected him. However, speed was is best trump card and he managed to dodge every fireball.

But because of the great fire, he didn't see the Hokage pull out a new kunaï which was wrapped in a special note. As soon as his feet touched again the ground, a kunaï flew and stucked itself into the roof. He heard Yondaime begin his technique. "Hiraishin no Jutsu!"

The last thing he saw was a yellow lightening, paired with its sound, before receiving a strong hit in the stomach. The punch was powerful and it send Naruto flying back on several meters. Although he had hardly landed on the back, he tried to take again a fighting stance but before he could do that, he heard and saw an other yellow flash.

During a few seconds, Naruto was blinded by the flashes of light created by the moves of the shinobi. Punches camed one after the other and each one of them seemed even more powerful than the previous one. In this state, he was not able to counter-attack. Finally, in a last flash, Yondaime appeared just above the young ninja and hit him so hardly that he went crashing into the ground.

The tuiles all broke under the impact and blood appeared at the corner of his mouth. He had received sereval hits at the head and little by little, his ANBU mask began to crack and then completely fall.

Yondaime was preparing an other attack but he froze at the sight of the face of his enemy.

Nobody was watching the fight at this moment, but if somebody had, he would have been surprised to see the Hokage stop and even more too see that his hands were trembling. He was standing at a few meters from they boy. An unbelieving voice pronouced only one name. "Naruto..."

The young ANBU let escape a moan of pain but managed to sit back, supporting on his elbow and opened again his eyes. When he saw the blood red orbs of the boy, Yondaime couldn't prevent himself from stepping backwards. "Kyûbi!"

-------------

On his side, Sarutobi had managed to place a explosive note on the two Hokages he was fighting and although they were still alive, he had gained some time.

Worrying for Naruto, he took this moment to observe his fight. A feeling of fear clutched his heart when he saw the young ninja on the ground and in a very bad situation. The old Hokage was planning to go and help him when he saw that the Yondaime wasn't moving. And he was even more surprised to see him hesitate and step backwards. It seemed that the blond Hokage had said something but Sarutobi was too far to hear anything.

However, he heard extremely well the sordid laugh of his former apprentice who had just witnessed the end of their fight.

"What a coincidence, ha ha ha! Who could have thought that this ANBU would in fact be your son, Yondaime..."

Sandaime turned to see the young Hokage who seemed shocked and unable to move or to look away from Naruto.

"Kill him!" Orochimaru ordered.

Sarutobi tried to go by his side but he saw that Shodaime was already coming back and he had to prepare for the round two of their fight.

Naruto had more or less managed to stand up but he felt that he probably had three or four broken ribs, as well as a fractured right leg. He had received worse wounds but with these ones, he couldn't walk properly. He was expecting an other attack and didn't understood neither why the Hokage had stopped like that, nor why he had spoken the name of the fox demon.

Suddenly, he saw the Hokage fall on his knees. Apparently suffering from some pain, he was holding his head, just where the Sannin had placed the kunaï.

The young boy quickly apprehend the situation and saw that it was his chance to attack. But as soon as he tried to stand and walk, he felt an incredible pain through his stomach. When he lift his head, he got the impression that a sort of mist had surrounded them both. Astonished, he saw a gosthly silhouette appearing between him and Yondaime.

The other ninjas had stopped their fights and were now frozen at the sight of this strange mist. Then Shodaime and Nidaime also fall on the ground, holding their heads.

The Sannin felt that the situation was escaping from his control. He absolutely didn't understood what was happening to the Hokages he had summoned.

"What's going on?! Stand up now! I summoned you! You must obey!"

While Orochimaru was shouting his orders, Sarutobi was gazing at the silhouette, which was bacoming clearer, with a mix of fascination and horror. He then reconnized the figure he had seen only once in his life, eleven years ago.

"Shinigami..."

"WHO DARES SUMMON THE DEAD..." The voice was deep and powerful. The ninjas couldn't prevent a shiver when they heard it. "WHO...?"

Unforunately for him, Orochiamru involuntarily stepped back. The head of the Shinigami turned on his side, as a terrible smile appeared on his face. "HUMAN... WHEN YOU PLAY WITH TIME AND DEATH... YOU SHOULD BE READY TO PAY ITS PRICE..."

Two translucid arms came out of his body and extended, aiming for the Sannin who quicky understood the situation. The Shinigami was going to take his soul and he wouldn't have enough time to flee... He was caught in his own trap.

"Kuso!" His hands formed a complex serie of seals. "Reikon-Kusari no Jutsu." (13)

The Sannin had just said these words when he was hit by the arms of the Shinigami. Sandaime saw that the god of death was extracting something from his body. Hands and then arms appeared. They were as transparent as the Shinigami, but the rest of the ninja's soul didn't came out.

Orochimaru's smile was tainted by a dark triumph. "You... will not... get me!" He managed to say depsite the evidente pain.

"YOU ARE CLEVER SNAKE... THIS TIME I WILL ONLY TAKE YOUR ARMS... BUT FEAR THE DAY OF YOUR DEATH.... FOR I WIIL BE WAITING ON THE OTHER SIDE..."

The Sannin's arms became black and fall, lifeless, by his sides as the ones of the Shinigami bagan to retract. Turning away from Orochiamru, the god looked at each one of the summoned Hokages.

"I SHALL TAKE BACK WHAT IS MINE..."

He lift the hand and Naruto, as well as Sandaime saw the kunaïs coming out from the bodies of the Hokages. The steel weapons fall on the ground and broke into several pieces. A dark fire burned the cursed notes.

"FARWELL..."

After that, the Shinigami disappeared and the surrounding mist evaporated.

Ororchimaru realized that he wasn't able to fight anymore and he ordered to the Sound ninjas to dispel their jutsu. The violet barrier then slowly disppeared. "Don't think you won, Sarutobi! I will come back and this time, I will definitively destroy Konoha." He spat before fleeing with his underlings.

Sandaime wanted to follow and catch him but he was exhausted after the battle and he knew he wouldn't be able to fight again the four of the Sound.

He turned to look at his former Sensei, although he was sure that his gaze would only met a desert roof. He was astonished to see that they were still here and they seemed full of life.

"Ho... How is it possible? You are still alive..."

The two Hokage had stood up again and smiled when they looked at him. But it was a smile tainted with sorrow and resolution.

"Sorry Saru, but I don't think we will stay like that for long."

"What?"

"After all, we have died a long time ago." Nidaime added. He lifted his hand in front of him and Sarutobi saw that it had become black and was slowly turning into dust.

He sighted, resigned. "I understand. I've been glad to see you again."

"Same for us." Shodaime said while observing the surrounding town. "You have built a beautiful village Sarutobi. Protect it for us."

As soon as those words came out of his mouth, his whole body became dark and fall into dust. A few seconds later, the same thing happened to Nidaime and the old Hokage was unable to move as his saw his sensei fall again in the other world. For a few moments he stayed like this, lost in his memories, observing the dust spread by the wind.

Suddenly he heard the sound of a kunaï which sliced through the air and stucked itself in a tile, then the voice of the Yondaime. "Naruto! What the- ?!" He turned round and saw that the boy had still an arm extend in the young Hokage's direction.

"Naruto ! Stop it, you don't need to fight him anymore ! "

The crimson eyes turned at the Hokage for an instant before coming back to his enemy. The boy simply nodded. "As you wish Hokage-sama. "

"Jiji, what is going on here?" Yondaime asked. Sarutobi had never seen him so lost.

He didn't had time to answer as five ANBU appeared in front of him, a knee on the ground.

"Sandaime-sama, are you hurt?"

"No, I'm fine. I just used too much chakra. But Orochiamru has escaped. What happened in the village?"

"There are a few lossesm but the destructions are majoritarily material. Orochiamru had summoned his snakes but they were defeated, and this victory is highly due to the Ino-Shika-Cho team. The other ninjas of the Sound and Suna have been eliminated or made prisoner. The Mizukage as well as the Daimyô are safe but some of the Council members have been killed."

"I see. You did a very good job. I will take care of the rest."

"Haï." The ANBU who was talking took a look at the other shinobis, behind the Hokage. "How about these two? But it's... Yondaime-sama?!"

"I will explain everything later. For now, we must take care of the wounded villagers and ninjas."

"Ha... Haï."

Sarutobi spoke to the young Hokage. "Could you wait for me in my office? I will come later. Take Naruto with you, I don't think he can walk well."

"Jiji, what is..."

"Please trust me, Minato. You too, Naruto."

"... Okay." Yondaime answered. He approached the young boy, and in his cerulean blue eyes were filled with confusion but also with a growing joy and fear. He offered his hand to help Naruto stand up but saw that apparently, he had a broken leg. Minato cursed himself, it was his fault.

Then he put a an arm around his shoulders and lifted him on his back. "Hang on." he said before leaving at an incredible speed toward the Hokage Tower.

The ANBU silently watched them leaving, absolutely astonished. Sarutobi sighted again, although he may appear quite calm, he was in fact totally deconcerted by the recent events. First of all, why was Minato still alive...

TBC

* * *

Here`s the translation:

(1)Risu: Squirrel

(2)Ninpô : Shishi Enjin: The cube of Crimson Flames

(3)Konoha Ryû: Taiyo no Maï: Style of Konoha, Dance under the Sun (jutsu perso created from the Dance under the Moon -Mikazuki no Maï- of Hayate)

(4)Shuriken Kagebunshin no Jutsu: Multicloning of Shurikens 

(5)Kuchiyose : Edo Tensei: Summoning, reincarnation of the souls

(6)Karyû Endan: Infernal Wildfire of the Dragon

(7)Suijinheki: Water Barrier

(8)Suishouha: Tidal Wave

(9)Doryûheki: The great Wall

(10)Hiraishin no Jutsu: Technique of the Flash Move

(11)Kaze Tsurugi no Jutsu: kaze=wind, tsurugi=sword (jutsu perso)

(12)Hosenka no Jutsu: Techniaue of the Balsam

(13)Reikon-Kusari no Jutsu: Reikon=soul, kusari=chain (jutsu perso)

so, how was the chapter?? reviews please (^_^)  
next chap: Sad Reunion

See ya!


	4. Chap 3: Bittersweet Reunion

chap 3! here you go!

a little late maybe but i've some problems of connexion

by the way, thanks for the reviews and the adds^^  
already 4communities, 30 favs and 0 alerts! you guys are the best!!

just tell me if there's still words in french that i missed.  
hopefully, there should be none-_-

Enjoy!

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto, Masashi Kishimoto does.

* * *

_Forgotten Prisonner_

Chapter 3: Bittersweet Reunion

Yondaime had just arrived in what had been his office. He slowly removed his son from his back and placed him on a chair. The young boy slightly bowed the head, showing his gratitude, then his gaze crossed the look of the Hokage. Minato had to fight to prevent himself stepping backwards at the sight of these blood red eyes. He was wondering what had happen to the seal but first, he had to take care of the boy's wounds as his had unexpectidly disappeared after the Shinigami's intervention.

"How are you feeling? Not too bad?"

"No, I'm ok."

"Wait, I'll try to heal you." Saying that, he placed his palm in front of him and gather his chakra which began to pulse in a dim green light. Naruto didn't fliched, even if Minato knew for having experienced it, that feeling his bones self repare wasn't a pleasant thing.

Five minutes later, Yondaime had to stop. "Sorry, that's all I can do. I'm not really a good medic. You'll be ok?"

"Yes. I heal quite fast."

"I see." He simply said. "_It must be because of the Kyûbi... at least, he can have a good effect this one._"

An awkward silence took place between the two ninjas. An incertain silence on one side, uninterested on the other. For the first time since long, Yondaime was frightened. Frightened by this voice so hard that didn't fit a child, by those lifeless eyes, so unexpressive. The young Hokage manage to ask him the question that preoccupated him so much.

"Tell me Naruto... How old are you?"

"Eleven."

"And why are you already a ninja? And an ANBU moreover?"

Naruto didn't kept anything secret. Apparently Sandaime trusted him and he had understood that he was the real Yondaime. He couldn't lie to him.

"I received a special training, Hokage-sama."

The blue eyed shinobi didn't knew what shocked him the most. The fact that Naruto had been trained apart or the title he gave him?

"There's no need to be so formal. Call me.. Minato... for now."

"You are the leader of this village Hokage-sama. I am at your service and I must show respect and obedience." He said in a cold voice.

Yondaime's eyes wided in horror. Who could have changed his son into this empty soul standing in front of him... into a boy who haddn't any feeling, who was only responding to orders... He felt anger flow in him and his fists cluchted so hard that his nails slightly hurted his skin.

"Who trained you?" Without noticing it, he had raised the voice.

"The membres of the Council and the ANBU, Ho... Minato-sama."

"Since when?!"

"Ever."

"What..." He relaxed his fists. All his fury had melt, leaving place to a cruel despair.

When he had sealed the Kyûbi, he already knew that Kushina wasn't alive anymore but he was hoping that Naruto could still be happy in his village. Him and his stupid optimism!

_Ever... _The hard and indifferent voice of the boy was resonnating in his head. Minato had never felt so much regrets. He had abandonned him, left him with cruel ninjas and villagers, and that was all they did for their saviour.

Unable to resist now, he knelt in front of his son and hugged him. The fear of aggavating his wounds had prevented him from doing that, but now nothing on earth could have stopped him.

"Minato-sama?"

"I'm sorry Naruto. So sorry... Could you ever forgive me..."

The young boy didn't understood anything. Why was Yondaime holding him so tightly...

Why was his voice so sad...

Why was he apologizing...

It was the first time that somebody hugged him and he had not a single clue on how to react. He ressented a slight pressure on his ribs but what he felt even more were the blond locks of Minato, stroking his forehead.

He opened the mouth to say something but he suddenly felt a pain piercing his chest and he bended, pushing the Hokage back.

"Naruto! What's happening?! Answer me Naruto! Naruto!"

The boy was hearing less and less the worried voice of the Hokage. His sight was darkening and he wasn't feeling anything. It was exactly like before, everything was becoming black while a voice appeared from the deepest parts of his mind. But this time, it was much more powerful.

… _Free me...... Free me!!!_

It seemed that the voice was coming from every side and was even breaking through his soul. But he resisted and managed with great efforts to move away from it.

Slowly, the young ninja came back to reality. The pain was still there but it was fading and his senses appeared again. However, he was still breathless.

"Naruto! Hang on!"

He lifted the head and crossed the Hokage's gaze. He seemed dreadfully worried but he sighed with relief when he saw him returning to his normal state.

"You're ok? What just happened?"

"I... I'm fine. It has already happened but I don't know what it is."

Yondaime had been on the edge of panicking. For a moment, Naruto had completely stopped moving and the colour of his wide opened eyes had changed, approaching the violet. But although he was the Jinchûriki, this kind of thing souldn't be happening.

"Do you remember something?"

Naruto nodded, there was no need to hide him that. "Only this strange voice which kept repeating 'Free me'."

Minato was still holding his son in his arms and his grip tightened a little. There was only one being who could have said that. Kyûbi. But with the seal he had placed, that should normally be impossible. Instead... Instead somebdoy modified it.

"Naruto, promise me you will do anything to resist to this voice. You must not hear it again."

"Haï."

Sarutobi would have lots of explanation to give him. Apparently, his son didn't knew about the seal so he could not question him directly. At this moment, the boy made a move to stand up. "Minato-sama, I'm fine."

"Oh yeah, sorry." he whispered, releasing him with regret.

A long wait followed his words. Yondaime took this time to talk with the young ninja and ask him about his life but each answer revolted him a little more and his silent anger was growing. Outside the sun was slowly disappearing as its last crimson rays of light left place to a cloudless dark night.

°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°

After what seemed centuries, the office's door opened and the two ninjas saw Sandaime come in.

"Sarutobi..." The Yondaime began but he stopped when he saw the young boy kneel and bow the head in front of the Hokage.

"Hokage-sama."

"Naruto, stand up. I already told you it wasn't necessary with me." Sandaime deeply sighted as he sat behind his desk and wiped his face with his hand. Then his voice souded normal again. "Are your wounds healed?"

Naruto put a hand on his ribs. "Almost."

"Then you should go to the Tower's infirmary. They will quickly take care of that. Come back here when you're finished."

"Haï."

The two Hokages looked the young ANBU as he went out then Yondaime turned round to face his old mentor.

"Sarutobi. Explainations." The voice was hard and he hadn't use his habitual nickname, but the old Hokage couldn't say he was not expecting that. "Why Naruto is... like that? And tell me who did it." Yondaime had the feeling he would not like what he was going to hear but he had to know.

"All right. But you should sit down first."

Minato came near the desk and sat on a chair, still intensly gazing at the Hokage. Then Sandaime briefly told his successor what had happened during those eleven years.

°-°-°-°-° Ten minutes later °-°-°-°-°

In the Tower, there wasn't a single ninja in the corridos who was not running. They had plently of thing to take care of after the battle and sometimes, they passed in front of the Hokage's office. He had told them that he didn't wanted to be distrubed and they were wondering what matter could retain their Hokage.

Inside, Sandaime had just finished his story and he hadn't to wait long before his interlocutor reacted.

"SARUTOBI!!!"

Yondaime immediately stood up and hardly slammed on the table with one hand while the other grabbed the Hokage's robe. Sandaime didn't do anything neither to protect himself, nor to calm down his anger, knowing that it was more than justified.

"How could you let that happened?! I trusted you!" His two hands clutched more tightly Sandaime's clothes. "I'm going to kill you!!" he cried, brandishing a furious but shivering fist.

For a few moments, they didn't move. The old man wasn't able to face him. He felt so shameful in front of these blue eyes filled with pain and regret. "Won't you defend yourself?" he heard.

"I've been too hesitant, I failed. I am sorry Minato, so sorry..."

Yondaime froze, those words were exaclty the one he had spoken a little while before in front of his son. He punched Sandaime but the hit wasn't powerful or filled with hate and he just pushed back the Hokage in his seat. Himself heavily sat again on his chair and caught his head between his hands. "Kuso..."

A few seconds later, Sarutobi heard his voice again. "You told me it was the Council members who decided to train him as a ninja. Who exactly?" The old Hokage could sensed the desire of revenge coming from his former successor.

"Well, there were three leaders who managed to convince everyone. You know them. It was Danzou, Uchiha Fugaku and Shûra Sei."

Yondaime was more than surprised. He couldn't believe that Fugaku, a man he knew and appreciated before, had made such a horrible decision. "Those bastards... They'll pay for that."

"Sorry to decieve you Minato, but Sei died six years ago when she used a unknown kinjutsu and Fugaku succumbed during the Uchiha massacre, four years ago."

"The massacre?"

"That's a dark story. I'll tell you about it an other day. As for Danzou... you will have to wait for your turn."

Yondaime glanced at him in an interrogative way and Sarutobi explained him what he had learned in the ANBU reports.

Apparently, during the invasion, the counsellor had believed to the victory of Suna and the Sound and had tried to join their ranks. To reach this goal, he had attacked and wounded several ninjas of Konoha. But the battle finally ended against his calculations. The shinobi enemies had not accepted him and the ANBU had managed to stop him before he got the chance to flee.

For the old Sandaime, that was one of the best news of the day. He was know officially considered as a traitor in Konoha and he would be interrogated by Morino Ibiki before being judged.

"There is still the Daimyô..." Minato whispered.

Sarutobi shivered at the sound of that threatening voice. Honestly, he was pitying the one who would have to face Konoha's Yellow Flash.

At this moment, Naruto came back in the office and Sarutobi decided to move the conversation on an other subject that worried him.

His gaze went from one of the blond ninja to an other, the resemblance was really outstanding. Same shape of the face, same colour of hair, only the eyes were completely differents. But the more he observed the young Hokage, the more he felt that something had changed. His face seemed to have lost its features of youth.

"What I'm going to ask may seems strange but you saw what has happened to Shodaime and Nidaime, did you? So, do you know why you're still alive?"

Yondaime examined his hand, almost feeling that it might turned to dust. "To say the truth, I have aboslutely no idea. I thought I would also disappear at this moment."

"I see... And did you felt there was a difference, compared to before?"

"Not when the snake summoned me but when the Shinigami freed me and I came back here, I felt less... vivacious, how to say... well... I have the feeling I'm... less.. young."

"Hm... That confims what I thought."

"Meaning?"

"I thought about this today, when the Shinigami came, I think that he did not only took Orochiamru's arms but he also cancelled his jutsu. After that, time took back its rights, Shodaime and Nidaime who died several years ago, turned again into dust. But you, you didn't not died naturally and consequently, you only got older."

Minato was astonished, he hadn't thought that such a thing was possible. "So... It's as if nothing had happened?"

"My stupide disciple probably didn't planned that. I don't think that there will be other effects. So yes, it is like nothing happened when you sealed the Kyûbi."

As soon as his words came out from his mouth, he realized his error. When him and Minato turned to Naruto, they saw a slight look of incomprehension appear on his face. For a few seconds, an incertain silence took place between the two Hokage before Yondaime decided to speak.

"Jiji, I think we should tell him."

Sandaime nodded. "You're the one to decide Minato."

"Thanks." Yondaime turned to face his son. "Naruto, do you know what happened to the Kyûbi when he attacked the village?"

"Of course Minato-sama. You fight the demon and defeated him."

"So that's the official version..." he whispered. "In fact, a monster such as the fox demon cannot be killed by mere humans. He only disappeared because I sealed him... in the body of a new-born.."

"I am the one who hold Kyûbi?" The young boy asked, and he didn't seemed concerned at all.

The two shinobi were a little surprised that he had understood and said it so directly. "Yes, I sealed him in you Naruto." Yondaime answered with a sad smile. "How did you find out?"

"I was already aware that I had a seal and the Kyûbi attacked eleven years ago, my age."

"You were already aware?" Sandaime asked. "Why didn't you told me?"

"I told Danzou-sama. He said he would transmit that."

At this moment, the same thought came into the two men's mind. _"Curse you, traitor. If there's anything left after Ibiki, I'll take care of that..." _

"I understand. But Danzou is not a Council member anymore. He will be discharged and judge for act of treachery. From now, you will not have to report to him."

"Haï."

Yondaime didn't spoke but inside, he was a little bit shocked. He thought that Naruto would be happy to learn the death of the man who had always used him as a weapon, or at least that he would feel anger. But that total lack of reaction, this cold and distant voice only left him more desperated.

The boy had learned important secrets about his birth today, but still he didn't seemed really affected. In a last dash of will and hope, Minato tried again to make him react.

"Naruto." He said in a kind voice. "Do you know why I chose you to be the Jinchûriki?"

"No, Minato-sama."

"Because I believe in you. I knew I was leaving you with a heavy burden, but I trusted you. And after all, I could not ask the other parents to sacrify their child if, as a Hokage, I was not willing to do the same thing."

"You mean that-"

"That you can call me Tou-san." He finished, stroking the golden hair of his son.

Sandaime was glad to witness this scene that he always had thought impossible. He too was now hoping that Naruto would feel something when he was a dim light shine in those red eyes which were normally so lifeless.

It seemed that the young boy could look away from the Yondaime. His voice even seemed less cold. "Is it re-"

_FREE ME !!!_

The voice exploded in his mind and everything suddenly became dark. In the same time, he heard an other sound, like a metallic noice which was so intense that it made him shiver.

But he recalled the orders he had recieved, those of Danzou, Sandaime, and above all Minato. He fought the voice as hard as he could and finally understood that he had won when he saw the light again.

For the two Hokages, it had only lasted for one second but they thought they had saw a violet flash enlighten Naruto's eyes for an instant. However, they stayed silent, waiting for his answer. Unfortunately, when he spoke, his voice had returned to the cold and indifferent one that Sarutobi had always heard.

"Is it an order?"

Minato painfully closed his eyes. It was more that what he could bear. The boy could not imagine how much these words broke his heart. At this moment, if he had been able to, he would have also try to play with time despite what he had saw a few hours ago.

His dark thoughts were interrupted by the sudden arrival of two Council members in the office of the Hokage. They had no even knocked at the door and came in, showing a look of authority.

Sandaime was not surprised to seem them here. "Homura, Koharu..."

"Sarutobi, what are you hiding again?" The old man began. "They say that-" His voice faded when he reconnized Minato.

"So it was true. Yondaime really came back." Koharu whispered. "How is it possible?"

"To resume it, let's say that one of Orochiamru's jutsu backfired against him." Sandaime said simply. "I suppose that you have already heard the report on the battle. He summoned the three Hokage but it has appeared that death is not something we should play with."

"You will have to explain the details to the Council."

"I thought as much."

"How will you announce that to the people? It is something that will have great repercussions, inside the Fire Country as well as beyond our frontiers and several rumours are already running between the ninjas." Homura explained.

Yondaime came to rescue him. For a moment, he had felt again this desire of revenge against the Counsil members, but he remembered what Sarutobi had told him. Those two were not yet part of the Council eleven years ago and although they had done nothing to prevent Naruto's training, they had done it because they cared about the village's sake and not for their personal interest. He would deal with them later, for now he took back his role of Hokage.

"I will do that myself. It will be annouced to the ninja first, and then to the villagers." he said firmly.

The Coucil members thought about that for a few moments. "We agree." Koharu answered. "But we ask you to wait before telling the civilians. Today our priority is to rebuild the village and our forces. Ninjas will keep the secret but we cannot take the risk that the villagers and merchants let everyone know. You had lots of enemies before, and some of them are still alive."

"I understand. I will take this time to learned what happened during those eleven years."

"Good." Sarutobi clapped his hands and stood up, ending the discussion. "I think it will be enough for today, it is already late after all. Oh, just one last thing Minato. If your identity must stay secret for a while, I suggest you do not keep this face outside."

"Hm yeah, you're right." As his hands formed a seal, he casted a basic jutsu. "Henge." A cloud of smoke encircled him. When it disappeared, the shinobi who was standing in front of them had turned into a brown haired and green eyed man a little bit shorter than the real Hokage. The lines of his face had slightly hardened and a thin scar was visible on the right side of his forehead. "Is it okay like that? I think I should also take an other name, what about Kazama Arashi?"

"Perfect."

"It should be enough." Koharu said. Then, for the first time since the beginning of their conversation, she seemed to be conscient of Naruto's presence and harshly spoke to him. "Kitsune, why are you still here? You should be at the ANBU headquarters."

"Yes, they are still waiting for their report." Homura added. "Where have you been during the invasion? Ah!"

A kunaï had just passed next his ear, shortly missing his head. He turned to the Hokage, furious. "What are trying to do?!"

Yondaime was now standing behind the young boy, a hand on his shoulder and his eyes were filled with a cold anger. "He won't go anywhere."

"What?"

"My son. Won't go. Anywhere!"

The two Counsellors froze when they heard those words. Homura seemed unable to speak but the old woman quickly responded. "I knew it, you look too much alike. So you have used your own child, Minato. I know this is going to be hard for you but this thing is not your son anymore, it is only the fox demon. Fortunately, he is under our contro-"

A second kunaï flew, cutting a few of her hairs and stucking itself even harder into the wall.

"Koharu." Sandaime calmly said. "I think you should better leave now."

"Such threats... Very well. We are leaving, but don't think you will be able to govern Konoha without the Coucil's support, Sarutobi." Saying that, she turned round and walk toward the door, looking absolutely outraged. Homura quickly followed her. They had completely forgotten to ask Yondaime if he would take back the seat of Hokage.

When they left, Sandaime rolled his eyes. "Yare, yare... Do know you many tons of papers I will have to sign after that?"

Yondaime smiled at the memory of this boring task. "Sorry Jiji."

Meanwhile, Naruto had went to take back the kunaïs stucked into the wall. "Hokage-sama, Minato-sama, your kunaïs."

"Ah, thank you Naruto." Sandaime said as he put his away. "But how do you know which one is mine? You were facing back at this time."

"The sound of air. You were not at the same distance, there's one which flew longer."

"I see."

As for the Yondaime, he was quite surprised by the skills of his son. "_Impressive._"

"You should really go and rest now." The old man said, taking something from one of his drawers. "Here, take that."

The young Hokage caught the thing he had just thrown and he saw that it was a bunch of keys. "Where do they come from?"

"What do you think, your appartement of course."

"Eh, really? Arigato." He gladly whispered. "You're coming Naruto?" Saying that, he pushed his son in the back and they walked toward the door.

"But Minato-sama..."

"No but, let's go! See you later, Jiji." ""

Once they were outside, Sarutobi went to the window, waiting for them to pass. A few minutes later, he saw two silhouettes, a blond head and a brown one, coming out from the Hokage Tower. The old man lifted an eyebrow when he saw them stop but was quickly reassured. Minato had knelt his front of his son to be at his height and was kindly ruffling his hair. When he stood up again, he put an arm around the boy's shoulders and they left.

Sandaime lifted the head. His gaze when over the village then over the forest to end in the dark sky of the night. It was difficult to think that chaos had invade the village only a few hours ago when he looked at the infinite but motionless multitude of stars. The sky was black but clear, premonition of a sunny day.

TBC...

* * *

so? how was it?

I'm already began to translate the next chap, I'll try to do it as fast as possible^^

See ya!


	5. Chap 4: A New Beginning

Chapter 4's out, at last!!

thanks to the two last reviews I recieved, it gave me enough energy to finish it. usally, after almost a month without updating, i have a review every four or five days, but to have those two in one day made me really happy! thk _ookami567 _and_ hikurai_.

in the last chap, I said it was going to go faster because I had already begun the trad... well, next time just don't believe me when I say that^_^

big chapter this one, hope you'll like it  
Enjoy!

_Disclaimer_: I do not own Naruto, Masashi Kishimoto does.

_Forgotten Prisonner_

_Chapter 4 : A New Beginning_

°-°-°-°-° Four months later °-°-°-°-°

The rising Sun was climbing higher and higher in the blue sky of Konoha, illuminating the Hokage Mountain and then, the red roofs of the town. Street's activity was slowly increasing as the first shops began to open while several teams of workmen were getting back to the construction sites. The repairs had advanced quite well since the invasion and the village had almost returned to his original state.

A young boy was sitting on a house's roof, his back leaning against the chimney. His eyes were closed as he felt on his face the light wind which was blowing on morning Konoha. Naruto was recalling, what he only did rarely, all the events that had happened those past months.

Since the day Yondaime came back, his life had completely changed. First, he moved and was now living with his father in a huge apartment in the East district, not far from the Hokage Tower. He had his own room, just under the roof, which was in fact almost as big as his old apartment.

The young ninja was also not anymore a member of the ANBU unit and the Council had no more his word to say, even if he was still doing a few missions sometimes. Now, he was more in contact with the other people, and particularly with the other shinobis. Minato's friends often came to visit them, especially Kakashi who, he had learn, was the former student of his father.

Yondaime's return had been announced to the ninjas three days after the invasion.

°-°-°-°-° Flashback °-°-°-°-°

In the low floors of the Hokage Tower, the great underground hall was humming with the conversations of a crowd of shinobis. Almost all of Konoha's forces had been called, excluding a few guards as well as the Genins and the younger other ninjas, and they were now impatiently waiting for the announce that should be made.

In one of the room's corner, some Jounins had gathered and were also curiously questioning themselves on what matter could deserve such a reunion.

"What do you think is going on?" A middle aged man asked a cigarette in the hand.

"I have no idea, but I don't think it is a good thing to leave the village so defenceless." A red eyed kunoichi answered.

"Don't worry Kurenaï. That damn snake was beaten so hard, we're not going to see him soon!" Her friend said, while playing with a kunaï. "But that's a shame; I would have loved to see that battle!"

Those words made the genjutsu mistress smile. "Why am I not surprised, Anko?"

At this moment the Jounins felt the ground shake, as if something enormous was coming nearer. They saw the crowd of ninjas moved away and left place to a Maïto Gaï which had apparently some difficulties to walk and whose arms and legs were hardly moving.

"Y... Yo..." The breathless ninja managed to say. He tried to make his super smile but his friends almost burst out laughing when they saw the result, which looked more like a wince than a grin.

"I can see you've raised your weights. Again." Asuma said, rolling his eyes. Half-amused, half-appalled by such inconsiderate efforts. "As if it was the right time to do that."

"That's the forfeit... because I... beat... fewer enemies... than Kakashi..."

"Still playing at your little duels, aren't you?" Anko replied, giving him a strong slap on the shoulder which almost made him fall. "Beside that, do you know why we're here?"

"I heard it could be about the Yondaime."

The group of shinobis turned to face the one who had talked. His silver hair was a mess; he waved a hand although his eyes were still glued on the pages of his book. He didn't have to wait long for their reactions.

"What?!" "Are you sure, Kakashi?" "What does it have to do with our situation?"

"Well, to answer in order. You heard me. No, I only listened to the rumours which are spreading between ANBU ninjas. And, some said that he has been seen after the invasion." He blurted out, without looking away from his book.

The Jounins stayed silent for a moment, quite startled by those revelations. But the silence only lasted for a few seconds because it was immediately broken by the enthusiastic voice of Gaï.

"Yosha!! If what you said is true, then it is the best news I've heard for years! Woooh! My patience is burning!!" He yelled, indeed giving the impression he was on fire. "Hey guys! What are those faces?! Kakashi, where has gone your fighting spirit? You should express the flame of your youth!!" He finished his speech thumbs up toward his great 'rival'. But said rival seemed a bit slow to answer.

"... … Hm? Did you say something?"

This only stopped Bruce Lee's twin for a short moment because he immediately began another speech, blaming the lack of enthusiasm of his friend.

But on the other side, Kurenaï had realized that the copy ninja wasn't as indifferent as he wanted to let it appear. A small smile began to appear on the young woman's lips when she saw that Kakashi was holding his precious book upside down.

Impatience even seemed to reach her friend. While her right had was on her hip, the other was making her kunaï spin faster and faster. "That old geezer is so slow! When is he going to make his announcement?!"

"The old geezer, as you say my dear Anko, is already here."

The shinobis turned round and were surprised to face the Sandaime, who seemed totally relaxed, a pipe in his hand.

"Hokage-sama? But, what are you doing here?" Kurenaï asked.

"That's right Oyaji, you're not supposed to make a declaration?" Asuma added.

A few shinobis, who were around the small group and had witnessed the scene, were now attentively listening. The old man took a deep breath and created a grey cloud of smoke. "For what I heard, the rumours about Yondaime have quickly spread, haven't they?"

His gaze went over the ninja's faces, and their silence only confirmed his words. "Well, let's say that somebody more related to this is going to make the announcement."

Several pairs of eyes blinked with surprise and their eyebrows frowned, expressing the doubt and incomprehension that Sandaime's words had made appear. Kakashi almost dropped his book. "Does it mean that-"

At this moment, it seemed that there was some agitation besides the door and all the heads turned in that direction. The Shinobi moved a little back; leaving place to the Counsellors who had just came in, Homura and Koharu at their head. Without a word, they went in front of the platform, in the middle of the crowd of ninjas. Slowly, silence returned but all of the people present here were now even more curious.

Footsteps were then here behind the stage but they quickly stopped, throwing the shinobis in an unbearable suspense. They heard, a little surprised the sound of a small explosion which was the specific of a ninjutsu. A few moments later, they finally saw him.

°-°-°-°-° A little bit earlier °-°-°-°-°

Yondaime had just arrived in the Hokage Tower, with Naruto besides him. The awkward silence that filled the corridors, usually so full of life and activity, made him a bit nervous. He did not really fear the moment when he would have to talk in front of the crowd but he didn't know how the ninjas, as well as his old friends, would react. He had lived those eleven years like they were a distant and blurry dream. He didn't recall much of it and had quickly been used to real life once more. But his return would probably be a great shock for the others and he wasn't sure if his presence would be normal again so soon.

On the other hand, his son had himself wished to come with him and that truly made him happy. Silent, they went down the stairs until the underground hall and passed by the back door, behind the stage. They were still hidden by a wall but they could already hear the sounds of the ninjas' conversations.

"Okay I'm going, you'll wait here?"

Naruto nodded and the Hokage began to climb the stairs. He had made halfway when he stopped because he had felt something pulling his coat backwards.

"The jutsu."

Yondaime stayed silent for a few seconds before understanding what he meant. His gaze lowered and he saw that he still had his other appearance, the one of Arashi. Apparently, he was more confused than what he had thought. To miss such a detail...

"I had totally forgotten, thanks Naruto."

Saying that, he made a handseal and dispelled the jutsu. After a last look at his son, he climbed on the stage. His appearance was welcomed by a heavy silence.

Minato closed his eyes for a short moment, when his blue orbs crossed again the worried but yet hopeful looks of the ninjas, he began to speak.

°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°

Naruto rested his back against the wall and listen his father explain the events that had occurred a few days ago. How Orochimaru had summoned the Hokages and how the Shinigami had interfered, bringing the Yellow Flash back to life.

"… the Sannin's kinjutsu has been simply and totally cancelled. Then, each one of us reverted back to his original age, Shodaime and Nidaime disappeared again and I am eleven years older. That is why, after all this time; I am now able to stand in front of you." His gazed went over the whole hall and the he continued. "It is a stroke of fate that I could not foresee when I used the fuinjutsu and I do not know what consequences it will have in the future. But for now, I will accept it gladly because I am now allowed to see Konoha once more." He finished with a small smile.

The crowd stayed still for a few moments and then a joyful shout was heard at the back of the hall. Cheers, acclamations, applauses quickly followed. "Long life to Yondaime!" Several ninjas shouted. Large smiles appeared on the faces of the gathered people and even on the ones of some Counsellors. Minato was glad and relieved; they had taken that news pretty well.

But unfortunately this time of rejoicing was shorten. Despite the loud cheering, a voice managed to pierce through and it didn't really seem joyful. "Impostor!" A shinobi spat. His shouts became louder and louder and caught everyone's attention. The closer ninjas tried to silence him but he didn't stop.

"Let him speak." The young Hokage ordered. Calm returned and he continued. "What is your name? And why do you think I am an impostor?"

"I am Touji Mikzuki, Chûnin and I don't believe you. You could be a mere clone under the snake's orders!" The grey haired young man exclaimed.

Several ninjas seemed outraged by those words and began to protest.

"Silence please." Minato said calmly. "I understand your suspicion but those arguments have no sense. What Orochiamru treasures most are his ninjutsu, why would he revive me if he had to sacrifice his arms in exchange? Moreover, even a Sannin does not stand a chance against the Shinigami."

"Liar! You don't have any proof and we can't trus-" His monologue was cut by a flying kunaï which barely missed the top of his head and stucked itself in the ground just behind him.

The shinobis who had followed the weapon's trajectory turned to the one who had thrown it. They crossed the cold and hard glare of a blood red eyed ninja who was standing on the stage, besides Yondaime. "Do not insult the Hokage." He said in a threatening voice.

Minato was as surprised by what his son had done than by his words because he wasn't expecting him to come and defend him. "Naruto, what are you..."

The Chûnin had pulled himself together and was now sending a hateful glare to the boy. "Curse you, demon! What are you trying to do? You shouldn't be here, damn fox!"

Yondaime felt his anger rise when he heard those words. But just when he was going to jump of the stage and dash toward the ninjas, he saw the kunaï and a smile appeared on his lips. It was a three prolonged kunaï, which was wrapped in a note.

His voice echoed in the great hall. "Hiraishin no jutsu!"

Mizuki only heard the brief sound of a flash before feeling a cold and metallic touch on his neck. The ninjas surrounding him slightly moved back and were now observing the scene with a mix of fear, respect and surprise.

"You wanted proofs... Here's one. Do you know anybody else who can use this technique?" Yondaime asked. Mizuki gulped, his eyes were now filled with true fear. He seemed tetanised by the threatening voice of the Yellow Flash. Minato held his weapon a little bit harder. "Call Naruto a 'demon' just once more and I swear that this jutsu will be the last thing you will see from this world. Is it understood?"

The Chûnin didn't answered fast enough so he tightened his grip and his kunaï drew a thin red line on his neck. "Understood?"

"H... Haï, Yondaime-sama." Mizuki managed to say. He began to breathe normally again when the kunaï's threat went away. But just when he tried to turn round, he received a hard punch of Minato on the face and crashed on the floor. The young Hokage send him a last angry glare before taking back his weapon. He threw it on the stage and half a second later he was back in front of all the shinobis.

Minato gave the kunaï to his son; he had given him this one the previous day when he had begun to teach him the Hiraishin. Naruto put it in his pouch and made a move to go back but he was stopped by Yondaime

"Wait, stay here." He faced the ninjas. "What I said concerns everybody. The first one who will harm my son shall pay with his life."

In the hall, only four people didn't seem surprised: Sandaime, Homura, Koharu and Kakashi. Everyone else just freezed of astonishment first and then of fear while a dreadful killer intent seemed to emanate from Yondaime.

"My last wish had been that you would see him as a hero, or a least that you would treat him like the other children. You, ninjas, should have understood better than the villagers that Naruto was the keeper of the seal and not the demon himself." His voice now sounded accusing. "But you didn't do anything, you didn't want to understand. And even worse, you have turned a child into a killing machine. My child."

A feeling of shame and guilt caught some shinobis. They lowered their heads, unable to bear neither the cerulean gaze of Minato, nor the dark red one, from Naruto. "I do not think I will be able to forgive you for that, at least not now. This is why I am not planning on taking back my position of Hokage." He finished more slowly.

This announcement seemed to confuse the crowd, some began to protest, others resigned but he wouldn't come back on this choice. Naruto wasn't surprised because his father had already told him that, but at the back of the hall, there was somebody who didn't seem happy at all.

A huge cloud of smoke was coming out from a very exasperated Sarutobi. "_Damn you, Minato... you're hoping to leave me all the paperwork? Don't even think about it!_"

Yondaime lifted a hand to ask for silence. "Even if I am not Hokage, I will still be a ninja of the Leaf and I will assist Sandaime in his work." Those words seemed to calm down almost all the ninjas -including Sarutobi who sighed with relief- and he chooses this moment to end the reunion. "Thank you for coming, but I think that Konoha should not stay defenceless too long, you may leave now."

The ninjas began to go out after a last round of acclamations. Many came to greet personally the Yondaime, including some of the Council Members who asked him to be present at the next reunion. "I will come." He coldly replied. He looked at Naruto for a short instant. "There are a few things I wish to … discuss about." He said while making his joints crack. If it wasn't for their dignity, some Counsellors would have quickly run away.

When they were all gone, Sarutobi joined them. "One day, they're going to die of a heart attack if you always scare them like that." He blew a circle of smoke. "But I will not be the first one to complain."

The former Hokage just shrugged, grinning and the three ninjas began to walk toward the doors. "You haven't seen anything yet Jiji."

"Minato-sama?" Naruto asked.

He turned to face his young son. "What?"

"I think there is somebody who wants to speak to you." He answered showing a shinobi coming near them. Yondaime immediately recognized this silver haired, half masked head.

"Kakashi?!"

"Long time not to see, Minato-sensei."

Said sensei had now wide opened eyes and was staring at his former student. "You're so grown up!"

The Jounin seemed so surprised that Sarutobi couldn't prevent a chuckle while Naruto looked at his father, a bit surprised. For them, that comment seemed a little weird, knowing Kakashi's age. "Well, I'm 27 now."

"Yeah that's true, I didn't think about it." He said, laughing. "You were still a fifteen years old kid for me."

"Hm... 16, Sensei. 16." he whispered.

"I'm going to leave you; I still have some work to do." Sandaime said. "You should go at your house Minato. It's better than discussing in this underground hall. You're free for this afternoon, Kakashi."

"Thank you Hokage-sama." The Jounin replied and after that, Sandaime went back in his office.

The three shinobis climbed the stairs and Yondaime reverted to his other appearance before going outside. As soon as they left the Tower, they leapt on the roofs, eager to avoid the crowded streets. Then Naruto went alone at his old apartment to take a few things he had forgotten.

°-°-°-°-° End Flashback °-°-°-°-°

Although his return had been a great announcement to the shinobis, it was still an S-ranked secret and the villagers didn't know about it yet. For now then, he was Kazama Arashi, a shinobi of Konoha who just came back from a very long mission and who was now living with him. To say that their neighbours didn't appreciated that a stranger came to live in the house of their beloved Yondaime was quite and understatement. And it had been even worse when they learned that Naruto had moved there too. They would have already complained to Sandaime if Arashi had not _kindly _stopped them.

This was probably what he understood the less in Minato's behaviour, that determination to help and protect him above all. He had always been told that he should only rely on himself and that beside his superiors, he should not trust anybody. It was quite normal, because who, in return, could really trust a demon...

He had always accepted that until now but since his encounter with the Yondaime, he had found more and more difficult to apply those precepts. To be honest, he did not even understood why he had protected him in front of Mizuki. He was sure he would not have done the same thing if it had been Sandaime. At this moment, his instinct had just pushed him to act, to do something to shut up this incompetent Chûnin who dared insult his father.

The young ninjas couldn't really explain it but, he just had the feeling that Minato would never betray him. If this was trust, then it wasn't as that dreadful...

Naruto was thinking about that when his vision began to blur slightly while a voice began to appear, paired to sounds of chains.

_Free me... please, free me..._

He shook his head, pushing back this voice in the deepest part of his mind. He was now quite used to those random intrusions, although he still didn't understood their origin. In fact, that voice seemed to be much more weak and more desperate than at the beginning.

At this moment, he heard the voice of Minato who was calling him.

"Naruto? You're awake? Hurry up!"

The young boy stood back and went back in his room through the window before coming in the dinner room. His father was in the kitchen, cooking the breakfast and he turned the head when he heard him coming.

"Ohayo..." He said with a yawn.

"Ohayo. I thought you weren't coming back before noon."

"The mission went faster that what we planned at first, thanks to Kakashi's Saringan. I came back this night." He answered.

"I know."

Yondaime had a small grin when he came back in the dinner room. "Should have known." He said, stroking his blond hairs. "Hurry up now or you'll be late. I know it's the last day but still..."

"I already ate, I thought you would still be sleeping."

Minato opened the mouth to answer but something came back in his mind. "You know how to cook?" He asked, a little surprised.

His son just shrugged off. "Kind of."

The young Hokage gave him an uncertain glance but didn't ask for other details. "I see..."

Naruto walked to the door and put on his shoes in the entrance. "I'm going, Otou-san."

"See you later."

Naruto nodded and went out of the house, making for the Academy.

When his son was gone, Minato came back in the dinner room and finished his breakfast while reading a few reports. He tried to concentrate on the current affairs but he was distracted and his thoughts inevitably returned to Naruto.

This was also a huge change, the Academy... Yondaime had registered his son there three months ago, as soon as he heard what kind of mission he was doing. He hadn't believed his eyes when he read the ANBU's archives and he still couldn't believe his ears when he asked Naruto for other details. The feeling of horror mixed with regrets which had clutched his heart at this time had not left him yet. There were A and S-ranked mission... and almost all of them were involving assassination.

Each ninjas who had experienced Yondaime's wrath back then was still filled with fear. Since that day, a third of the Council had resigned and after a short expedition of the Yellow Flash, a new Daimyô had ruled the Fire Country. All of this had allayed him a little but he was still angry to know that some shinobis didn't stop to see Naruto as the fox demon.

Talking about the Kyûbi, Minato had not found yet any kind of problem concerning the seal. It was a good and a bad news in the same time. Good because it meant that the monster was still firmly imprisoned; and bad because then, there wasn't a single clue on the origin of his eyes' colour. That worried him because if there was one thing he was sure of, it was that Naruto had blue eyes, the same as his. This eleven years old memory was short but it was engraved in his mind.

Yondaime had exert himself to find other trails, he had questioned many ninjas and probably almost all the ANBU brigade. He had even met Uchiha Mikoto, Fugaku's wife and only survivor of the massacre with her son, but she had not been able to gave him any information.

The first suspect had of course been Danzou and for several weeks, Minato, with the help of Ibiki had tried to make him confess. Their efforts were in vain, the traitor had only opened his mouth to cursed them and claim his future revenge. After a few days, his spirit already seemed on the verge of breaking. He understood that his desired power was slipping out of his hands forever and after several attempts, he finally killed himself. Despite his madness, he was still a skilful ninjas and he had managed to steal a kunaï from a young and inexperienced guard, and had been found dead, the weapon stucked in his heart.

A sombre and pathetic death which would go unnoticed in the ninja world and which would be quickly forgotten. That was all he deserved, and there wouldn't be many people to mourn for him but the problem was that he died with all his secrets.

During the following weeks, Yondaime then realized that nobody was aware of what had happened and he often thought about what Kakashi had told him.

°-°-°-°-° Flashback °-°-°-°-°

Minato and his former student had just arrived to his apartment after revealing his return to the ninjas. The two shinobis had brought up old memories, with pleasure and a bit of sadness, thinking about their team mates Rin and Obito. They talked like that for a while before discussing about Naruto. Kakahsi seemed to regret deeply that he had not paid enough attention to his Sensei's son. Although Minato said that he didn't blame him, he still bearded a grudge against himself and at least, he wanted to tell him what had happened.

"As soon as the Kyûbi was sealed and when we understood that there was no more threat, we realized how important the disaster was. A dreadful number of ninjas had died during the fight as well as several civilians. The village was partly destructed, Sandaime was seriously wounded, Yondaime was dead...

Konoha had nobody to turn to and for a few weeks, Coucil members and clans head took care of the situation, or at least, the ones who were still alive. When one of these leader announced that the Kyûbi wasn't dead but just sealed, it created a huge wave of panic in the village and at first..." Kakashi sighed, unable to face his Sensei, he looked away.

"At first, almost all the villagers, including the ninjas, asked for the Jinchûriki's death. Your last wish, to treat Naruto as a hero, had been heard but was immediately forgotten because everybody only saw him as the one responsible for this tragedy. Shinobis and civilians insisted so much that the Council was forced to react. They told us that they would take care of everything and that there was nothing to fear. The disaster had deeply shaken the villagers and although there were some protests, a large majority was relieved and gladly accepted this announcement. A few weeks later, we all thought that he was dead because nobody had seen him.

It lasted for five or six years, and then rumours appeared. They talked about a young boy recently promoted ANBU and who had eyes that reminded the ones of the fox demon. Rumours spread quickly and were finally confirmed when Naruto came to live in an apartment in the village. To say that everybody was shocked would be quite an understatement. Nobody was happy to see again the living memory of the Kyûbi. Once more, they asked for his death but this time, Sandaime-sama and the Counsil were firm and they created a law to protect him and keep the seal secret to the younger generations. Despite the protestations, the law resisted and the villagers were forced to hide their resentment in front of the Hokage. But inside, hatred and disdain didn't fade.

At this time, I had just left the ANBU unit and I was back in the Jounin ranks but I met him a few times." Kakashi's voice now seemed tainted with sadness.

"When I learned that he was back, I wasn't as horrified as the other villagers but... I wasn't pleased either. He looked so much like you that it seemed I was facing a mini-Yondaime. But in the same time he was your exact opposite, I never saw him laugh or even smile. And… There was a part of me that didn't want to see again those eyes that looked so much like the ones of the monster who killed my sensei and my team mates. Sometimes I watched him form afar but I never had enough courage to approach him. I only eased my conscience by telling myself that at least he was alive and that he didn't need my help. I've been such an idiot... I am sorry Sensei."

Minato put a hand on his shoulder and gave him a comforting smile. "Kakashi, I am not blaming you. You were very young at this time and I understand what you could have felt. I cannot not forgive my own student and I must thank you for telling me everything."

°-°-°-°-° End Flashback °-°-°-°-°

Yondaime was now worried by those years where his son seemed to have disappeared from Earth's surface. In fact, even when he questioned him about it, Naruto told him that he remembered nothing before his fifth birthday. With Sarutobi, who had not seen him during this period as well, and Kakashi, they were searching for every bit of information which could guide them but they found absolutely nothing. Nowhere. Even in the Hokage's library, in the archives of Konoha and even in the hyper-confidential files of the Anbu unit, there was nothing.

It wasn't normal and Minato was sure that it was again hiding some dark plots of the village's authorities. But this total lack of information was eating him away and sometimes, he thought that nothing would ever change and that Naruto would be a cold and indifferent ninja for the rest of his life.

Although this past months, it seemed that some progress had been made. The young boy talked more and seemed more relaxed and less dark. Minato had managed to convince his son to call him Otou-san, even if Naruto had called him Otou-sama at first.

_Otou-sama_... He let escape a small laugh, with this kind of title he wasn't becoming older by ten years but by thirty! At least, he didn't hear _'Chichi-ue'_, it was a relief. (1)

But despite all those changes, the problem was still here: he had only 'managed to convince him' because Naruto would not do it naturally. His voice was still the same, hard and indifferent and Minato truly understood what Kakashi could have felt because he had not seen him smile yet...

Yondaime took a look at the clock and cursed when he saw what time it was. He quickly put his plate in the sink and got dressed while putting away his files. Time was indeed something difficult to get used to again. Passing in front of the clock, he rushed even more. Unlike his student, the Yellow Flash was not famous for his lateness but it could change soon.

°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°

In another district of Konoha, students were gradually filling the empty Academy. The younger stayed in the outside grounds, playing while waiting for the beginning of the classes whereas the other ones went to talk in their rooms. A joyful atmosphere filled the classroom of the sixth years, the elders in the school.

Several students were gathered in the middle of the rooms, girls only, who were surrounding a dark haired boy. They were desperately trying to obtain a answer from their national love crush, Sakura and Ino leading the group. Behind them was Shikamaru, easily recognizable by his famous 'troublesome...' who was sitting next to Chôji and the two of them were talking with their friends, Kiba and Shino.

The future genins were absorbed in their conversations but their attention was caught by the arrival of another student. The sound level in the room evidently lowered when a well-known blond ninja entered in the room. The small groups began to move apart, his arrival usually meant that their Sensei would be here soon. Naruto was walking toward the back of the class when he felt something soft rubbing against his leg. Looking down, he saw the white form of Akamaru who was greeting him like every morning, although Naruto didn't really knew why the dog had taken this habit. He patted him on the head before sending him back to his master, who seemed very pleased.

Naruto took a seat in the back of the room next to Shikamaru without looking the other students. They were not going to complain, they rarely talked to him anyway. It wasn't that they hated him or tried to make him feel uneasy but the truth was they were a bit afraid of him, although as future shinobis they didn't really want to admit it. Indeed, they were still kids and they would have never thought that a child of their age could be so cold and quiet. Hell, even Shino was more talkative.

But that wasn't feared by everybody. Shikamaru, who loved his peacefulness had sometimes proposed him to stayed with him and Chôji for some cloud watching. The Nara's heir, contrary to the popular belief, could be extremely insightful and therefore had well perceived that Naruto wasn't as scary or fierce as his blood red eyes let appeared. But despite his reasoning, he could help but feel a little uneasy when he heard his voice. That feeling made him hesitant whenever he talked to him.

He heard the bell ring and when Naruto sat besides him, he lifted his hand and greeted him as Naruto greeted him back. The other student still didn't dare to act in the same casual way and Shikamaru and earn a certain respect for that. In fact, with Chôji, he was almost the only one to call him by his first name.

As usual, the blond boy seemed to be at the centre of the class' attention, although he didn't really mind it and acted as if he couldn't sense that their gazes were focused on him. For a short moment, he thought that he heard sounds of clashing chains but this feeling quickly faded when he saw their Sensei come in.

"Ohayo." Iruka said.

The students greeted him back and as soon as the morning call was done, he gave them the day's schedule. "It is the last day before your spring holidays, and as I dot not wish you to forget everything I manage to make you learn, we will start with a small revision test." he announced.

Immediately, the class started to protest and to complain about their Sensei. The chûnin had to raise the voice to be heard. "And if… if you finish quickly, you will be able to help me to prepare the tournament." Got them. It had now the pupils' whole attention and curious questions came from all sides.

"To end this term and to prepare you for the Genin exam, I organized a tournament for this afternoon. And only those who will have finished the test will be able to take part in it." He finished, enjoying his students' dilemma.

There were still some disapprobative whispers but generally, the excitation caused by the announce of a tournament was enough to motivate them. Then Iruka began to give the subjects and sat behind his desk to watch them. His gaze went over the fully concentrated future ninjas and stopped on a blond head.

If he was honest with himself, the young chûnin was glad to have Naruto in his class. Sure for three months the class' atmosphere had changed a bit but he thought that he should better be surrounded by children of his age than by adult shinobis, and besides the boy had not protested at the idea of losing his rank. And unexpectedly, his arrival had contributed to motivate a few students.

Of course, Naruto quickly became the first in class, which was more than expected, being a Anbu level ninja. But the fact that a silent and solitary fresh man outperformed the bests had upset a few of them. The heir of the Uchiha clan for example. Sasuke had been absolutely mortified to learn that he had been pushed back to the second place and was twice as hardworking. After that, the majority of his fan-girls also had followed his example and their results improved, particularly those of Sakura who was now the best of the kunoichi, followed by Ino. And about the lazy boy sitting at the back besides Naruto… well, Shikamaru was Shikamaru. Kind, kind of lazy, and always sleepy.

-----------------------

The afternoon had just started and the pupils were now gathered in the vast gymnasium, temporarily transformed into an arena. They were attentively listening to their Sensei who was explaining the tournament's rules.

"The matches will be one vs one. You are 32, therefore there will be 5 rounds. Concerning the preliminaries, the eighth and quarterfinal you will use the four grounds, which will allow us to save some time and for the last three matches you will pass one by one. You win the duel if your opponent is immobilized, if he gives up or in the worst case, if he is knocked out. You are allowed to use taijutsu, genjutsu and moderated ninjustu. And I say moderated, Sasuke." The chûnin said, fully aware of the young boy's liking concerning devastating fire techniques. Sasuke just shrugged.

"That concerns each of you and I will repeat it for the last time. It is a simple tournament and the ground is not adapted so no jutsu which entirely destroy the roof of the gymnasium or knock out the rest of the class, understood?" he added, intensely gazing at Naruto, who nodded. "NO jutsu which blocks the tenketsus of three pupils for six months." For Hinata. "NO justu which involves cleaning a disgusting room after Akamaru's turn." Kiba. "NO justu which leads to an attack of the whole country's mosquitoes on the Academy." Shino. "And withdrawal due boredom will not be accepted." This last precision was welcomed by a tired yawn.

Iruka was almost sure that the major danger had been drawn aside and he asked them to come near the box he prepared and take a paper were was written a number which would decide on their distribution. Naruto drew the 29, therefore he was in the last group and while waiting ha observed the other duels.

The ninja kids fought with enthusiasm and the over-excited encouragements their comrades pushed them to do better. The match who attracted the biggest attention was the one of Sasuke, n°4, who received tons of acclamations. Then the most comical duel was the one of Shikamaru, n°15 who faced Kiba, n°16. The young genius was so lethargic that he had been surprised by Akamaru and the pupils burst out in laughter at the rare sight of a running Shikamaru. But when he pulled himself together, he managed to capture both of them with his shadow justu and easily won the match.

When Naruto's turn came, he wanted to test his knowledge of a new jutsu he had learned but without the others noticing it. The young ninja was turning back to the spectators and when Iruka gave the starting signal, he discreetly made a hand seal and an explosive tag. The window in other corner of the room exploded and all the heads turned with surprise because nobody had begun the matches.

At this moment, they heard behind them the sound of a light flash, like a cracking noise and they turned back again to see a knocked out n°30 on the ground and Naruto, who was putting away a strange kunaï. It was of course the fastest victory, but he was sure that he could not do it again because that had drawn out the student's curiosity and they would not be fooled once more.

The duels continued and the four finalists were designated. There was of course Naruto, then Sasuke as well as Hinata and another kunoichi, n°12. As expected she was defeated by the former Anbu who had tried to hold back as little. The semifinal which opposed the two others was definitely longer. Surprising them, Hinata managed to stand up to Sasuke for a while. But the girl, always so reserved shy in front of crowds, was unfortunately distracted by the loud cheers and finally lost.

The class was now impatiently waiting for the beginning of the match between the prodigy Uchiha and the mysterious Uzumaki, because it was the first time they were fighting.

Sasuke made the first move, using a great number of senbon and shuriken, he made a diversion to find an opening. As soon as he saw one, he dashed toward his opponent, a kunaï in the hand. But he did not noticed that Naruto had purposely left an flaw in his defence and the young Uchiha found himself blocked before saying hello to the ground a few meters away.

During a few minutes, he constantly attacked, throwing quite powerful kicks and punches which showed a certain control of taijutsu. The boy's irritation was increasing because his opponent avoided each one of his movements as if it was nothing. The two boys were now fighting above the ground, supporting on the walls.

When they reached again the ground, it was clear that Sasuke was already tired because he was heavily breathing. He crossed the gaze of Naruto. The disdain and the disinterest that he believed to see in those red eyes pushed him to fight.

He made several seals and placing a hand in front of its mouth, he took a great inspiration.

"Katon…"

"Not wait Sasuke!" Iruka shouted. Unheeded.

"Gokakyû No jutsu!" An enormous fireball emerged from his lungs and moved towards the blond ninja. This one was slightly surprised; he did not think that an Academy pupil knew this technique but that was not really a problem. He took his three prolonged kunaï and threw it as he whispered. "Hiraishin No jutsu."

He had done that so quickly that the others were not able to see it and besides they were far too busy running away to avoid the fireball which was now coming towards them. It left some flames in its wake and created a large hole in one of the gymnasium's wall.

"Sasuke!! What are you doing? You could have wounded the other students!" Iruka was really mad, as the boy did not seem to listen to him because while looking for his opponent. "Uchiha Sasuke! Are you even listening?!" He asked in vain.

The pupils were now looked them, wondering were was Naruto when they heard the sound of shurikens hitting the ground. They had landed just where Sasuke was a few seconds before and they came from the top. The class raised their heads and then saw the blond ninja, feet on the ceiling and head down.

After throwing the shurikens, he spoke to his opponent. "Listen when somebody is talking to you." he said before landing on the ground.

Those words made Sasuke absolutely furious. If there was something that he truly hated, it was to be ordered around.

"I don't see why I should obey you! You'll have to apologise to me when I'll beat you!" He yelled exclaimed, losing his temper.

"That's not really going to happen." Naruto answered. He was just stating an established fact because a former Anbu defeated by a Genin wannabe wasn't a probable result. But the young Uchiha had the feeling that he was making fun of him.

"That's what you think. I watched your last duels, your only skill is your speed and nothing else. You don't use ninjutsu or genjutsu and your taijutsu is not that extraordinary, you would last long against more powerful-"

As he was speaking his opponent suddenly disappear in mid-air and his words remained wedged in his throat. Surprised and confused whispers could be heard among the students. Iruka sighed; he knew too well what was going to happen. Sasuke felt like a draught behind him and he froze when he sensed a presence.

"Uchiha. With what will be the use of the most powerful blow if you can't touch your enemy?"

The boy seemed to shiver when he heard this cold voice, but pulling himself together, he tried to punch his opponent who easily dodged the blow. Naruto stepped back and took a fighting stance.

His blood red gaze fixed on Sasuke, he dashed. The young ninja was moving so quickly, drawing zigzags, that the students saw several images of him. The Sharigan eyes were jumped from left to right, still unable to follow his moves and without realizing it, he stepped back.

The image of Naruto was still in front of the pupils but in fact he was already behind his opponent. He was going to give him the final blow when the door suddenly opened as a loud shout echoed in the gymnasium. "UZUMAKI NARUTO! WHERE THE HELL ARE YOU??"

The young ninja stopped his move and Sasuke almost fall when he realized that he had been just behind him, ready to strike.

The other pupils and particularly Iruka had remained motionless, astonished by this sudden arrival. The person who had just shouted came in and they realized she was kunoichi. Her short purple hairs were tied in a short ponytail and she was wearing a long brown coat which left the older boys with wide sized saucer eyes when it opened. Iruka was recognizing her now, the so famous Tokubetsu Jounin.

It seemed that she was searching for somebody and went straight to Naruto when she saw his blond head.

"Mitarashi… "

"At last, I found you! I searched every floor and even the roof of the Academy without finding anybody. Good thing I saw a fireball coming out from here. Why aren't you in your damn classroom? I wasted so much time!"

The young boy only shrugged. "Iruka-sensei organized a tournament." He answered.

Iruka mentally cursed his student, she was already enough irritated and there was no need to anger even more the sadistic Jounin. Anko turned to him, and he felt a shiver running down his spine as he saw a smile appear on her lips.

"Iruka hm…? I'll take of that later. For now I'll have to steal your student, Sandaime-sama's order."

"Err… Sure." He managed to say.

"Good, let's go then!" The young woman said before jumping on the broken window, which was in the Hokage Tower's direction. "That's quite useful.." She whispered to herself before shouting back. "Are you coming? I'm not going to play baby-sitters all day!" After that, she dashed outside.

Naruto turned to his Sensei, and bowed before following Anko and leaving a confused class. Finally, Sakura asked. "Who was she?"

Iruka didn't answer right away. "Class, you just met Mitarashi Anko, Tokubetsu Jounin of Konoha."

"Seriously?" Kiba said, with an unbelieving voice. "That crazy girl is a Jounin? "

"Yes, but you shouldn't speak about her like that if you want to live until the next day." Whereas the pupils gave him strange glances, he saw that the young Uchiha was still standing in the middle of the arena and he realized that they were forgetting all the duel thing. "And concerning the tournament… well, it was not finished, so I suppose that Sasuke wins the duel by withdrawal. That means he is the winner of the tournament, congratulations." The children seemed a little surprised by this outcome but they still cheered. "But I don't want to see this kind of jutsu here again!" Iruka added, raising his voice to cover the joyful blabbing of the boy's fan club, who did not really seem satisfied by that result.

The damaged building then came in the chûnin's sight and he sighed at the thought of the Academy director's face when he would see the bill of the repairs.

----------------------------

On the other hand, Naruto and Anko had just arrived in the Hokage's office and had joined Minato and Kakashi.

Sandaime thanked the young woman and was about to dismiss her when she stood in front of him and slapped a hand on his desk.

"Not so fast. I think you are forgetting your little deal."

Sandaime suddenly seemed to remember something. "Oh yes, now that you remind me..." He took three tickets from his top drawer and gave them to Anko. She took the vouchers but still didn't move.

"We agreed on five."

"Swindling..." The Hokage complained. "That mission was so short!"

"A deal is a deal and I will not compromise when it involves dango!"

Sighing, he gave her two other tickets that she quickly grabbed before heading toward the door. "Well thank you, Hokage-sama." She waved to the three other ninjas who had witnessed their 'arrangement'. "See ya!"

When she was outside, the young boy turned to face Yondaime. "Otou-san, what's going on?"

"We have a new mission Naruto." He replied.

"Exactly." Sandaime said. "And as I already explained it to your father and Kakashi, you are given a searching mission."

"Who is the one we must find?"

"Godaime." Kakashi said, cutting the Hokage.

"Godaime...?" Naruto repeated, slightly surprised. He looked the old Hokage. "Are you resigning?"

"Yes. As a matter of a fact, I am. For a few months now, I have the feeling that my job gets more and more tiring and all those reunions with the Council are not only endless but meaningless. Each day they contest a little bit more my authority and to be honest, I can't fight against them forever. Our dear Yondaime having decided to leave all these problems to an old man, I suggested to name the next Hokage and for once, I received the whole Council's approval.

"And who did you chose?" Minato asked, ignoring the comment about the 'dear Yondaime'.

Sandaime smiled at this question. "It's going to bring you back memories. The person nominated is Tsunade."

"Really?" The former Hokage said, he seemed glad to hear that.

"Yes, she has been recently seen in a town near Konoha and if you leave now, you may reach it before nightfall."

"Okay, let's go then." Minato said as they bowed to the Hokage.

"Good luck." Sandaime said. "You're going to need it." He whispered when they went out.

Outside, the three ninjas had separé to pack the things needed for their travel. Naruto and Arashi were now leaving their appartement and were heading toward the gates. They were still waiting for Kakashi when the young boy asked something.

"Tsunade, that's the name of the Sannin's kunoichi isn't it?"

"Yes, why?"

"You know her?"

"Sure I do. She was the former team mate of my sensei, Jiraiya. She was extremely powerful and had incredible medcial skills. I think she should be around fifty by now."

A few minutes later -yes minutes, surprisingly not hours- the masked Jounin arrived. The three shinobi set out for the next town, and passed the large doors of Konoha under a dazzling sun.

TBC…

So, how was it? Maybe you think that Naruto is changing a bit too fast but you wonder why I skipped his and Minato's interaction.  
that's basically because I don't want to write the same thing twice, you'll understand later.

if you ask, yes Mikoto Uchiha is alive because I wanted to do a father/son and mother/son relationship. Although it may look like I did a bit of Sasuke-bashing... Well, I don't really like him that much, so whatever^^

(1) Chichi-ue is a very formal way to say father.

PS: if there's french readers, the next chap should come out soon / s'il y a des lecteurs français, le prochain chap arrivera bientôt.

Thanks again for all your reviews, I love reading them^^

See ya!


	6. Chap 5: Follow the Wind

Chap 5!! Thanks for all your reviews, they really motivated me^^

I'll be a little more busy the next weeks, so maybe the next chap will not come out so quickly, but again...  
I did tell you that you shouldn't believe me when I say that, we'll see!

For now, Enjoy!

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto, Masashi Kishimoto does.

* * *

_Forgotten Prisoner_

_Chapter 5: Follow the Wind_

Night was slowly falling over the Western Forest of the Fire Country as the last rays of sunset filtered through the trees and drew luminous spots in the clearings. In this peaceful scenery, three shadows were dashing through the trees, jumping on the branches. Arashi, Naruto and Kakashi had left the village a few hours ago and approached the huge merchant town of Haneda (1).

Although it was already dark when they arrived at the city's entrance, there still reigned a rather important activity. Many hotels and bars were still opened and the three ninjas easily found a room to put down theirs backpacks.

"There's my plan." Minato started. "Let's split up and we will question the city's inhabitants, a Sannin is generally easy to remember and some people will probably be able to inform us."

"We will have to describe her then, what does she looks like?" asked Naruto.

"Hm… if she did not change too much, she's a blond kunoichi with light brown eyes, she has a purple diamond on her forehead and she loves to play and gamble. We could start with that, it reminds me that she received a nickname because she was always losing, Densetsu No Kamo, (the Legendary Sucker) or something like that." He answered, laughing at this memory. "It should be quite easy to locate a fifty-year-old woman so unlucky."

"Yeah, about that Minato-sensei… " The masked Jounin pointed out.

"What is it?"

"I do not think we should look for a fifty-year-old woman."

Yondaime seemed rather surprised by this comment. "And why?"

"Well, according to my information, she contracted many debts by gambling and to escape her creditors she would use a jutsu to appear younger. 10, 20 or 30 years younger."

"What??" Minato said. He wasn't expecting that. "You didn't tell me Jiji…" He rolled his eyes, deeply sighing "Well, never mind. Forget her age; I just hope that she still has the same features. Let's go!"

"Haï!"

The shinobi then scattered, walking in three different directions and leaving to search for information.

°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°

Naruto headed toward the Northern district of the city and was thinking while observing the neighbourhoods, seeking for gambling houses. He found strange the fact that a Sannin only spend her time playing and gambling everywhere and above all if it was to lose permanently. And to use a jutsu transformation to shake off the bankers… that was really odd. If she was so strong, then why didn't she take care of them by herself? It may not be very legal but it wasn't worse than fleeing all the time so why not…

By the way, why did they have to run after Tsunade? A kunoichi as powerful and famous like should normally keep contact with the hidden village. According to the ANBU reports he had read, the other Sannin was doing that. More or less.

The young ninja then saw a restaurant which was also used as a gambling house and he decided to start there. He went through the door and walked towards the counter behind which a waiter was standing, cleaning glasses. He was very tall and was turning back to the young ninja. Naruto had to raise the voice to be heard despite the surrounding hubbub.

"Excuse me."

"Yes?" The waiter turned round and faced… nobody. He lowered his gaze when he heard light knocks on the table and caught sight of a young boy. He was a little surprised to see it was only a child because his voice had made him thought that it was somebody older. "We don't serve kids under 16, here."

"No, I'm just looking for some information." He raised a little more the head and his gaze crossed the one of the waiter. The older man seemed to freeze; his hand cleaning the glass stopped its movement at the sight of those two red blood orbs which had cat like slited pupils. All he could do was nodding, while waiting for his question.

Naruto describe Tsunade and asked if he had seen or heard about such a kunoichi. The waiter brought together his memories as fast as possible but answered negatively. "No. Not at all. I do not know anybody like that." He blurted out.

The fair ninja glared at him more intensely. He had answered a little bit too quickly it was maybe hiding something. "Really?"

The waiter was now livid. Because of his clothes, he knew that the boy was a ninja even if he did not wear a hitai-ate. Normally, he wouldn't have felt so uneasy and hesitant but it was the first time that he saw such eyes and that was not a very pleasant experience. Only an idiot would risk offending a ninja, even if he was so young.

"Y… Yes. Yes! It's true, I never saw the kunoichi you… you are describing, I swear." He didn't look really believable right there, he had to find something else, and find it quickly. "But there another gambling house at the end of this street and its one of the most famous of the town. If that person loves so much game, she probably went there."

He waited for a few seconds, not even realizing that he was holding his breath. Naruto finally looked away, he was now sure that the man was telling the truth. "Okay, thank you."

The waiter sighed with relief and closed is eyes. But when he opened them again, half a second later, the boy wasn't in front of the counter anymore, not even besides the door. He heavily sat down on a chair behind him and stared at the entrance for a while. He almost jumped when he felt a hand on his shoulder. He turned the head and saw his friend standing behind him.

"Hey, are you okay? You're so pale, did you saw a ghost?" He joked.

Apparently nobody had noticed his discussion with the strange boy. He did not answer his colleague, only observing the place where the young ninja was standing earlier. "A ghost you say… " He muttered for himself.

On the other side, Naruto had left to find this famous gambling house. He wasn't thinking about the restaurant's conversation anymore, let alone to the impression he left to the poor waiter. He walked for a few minutes before seeing the building in question.

The curtain covering the entrance was decorated with the kanji 'Game'. Naruto pushed it and entered inside. He went through a long corridor and at the end, he found himself in a large room where the floor was covered with tatami. Many players were sitting there and they raised their head, looking slightly surprised at first to see a child come in. But that look changed when they detailed his clothes, characteristic of a shinobi.

"What are doing here, gaki? (2)" asked a man who was sitting at the opposite side of the room. The red jacket he was wearing, different from the other's blue ones, showed that he was the owner of this place. He knew well the world of ninja and had even learned to use a little his chakra so he wasn't really impressed by the young shinobi's appearance.

"I am on mission; somebody told me that the person I'm looking for probably came here."

"Many people come here; you'll have to do a better description."

Naruto complied and told him what he knew about the Sannin's look. As he described her, the young shinobi saw that their faces were changing from surprise to comprehension. Obviously Tsunade came here but nobody really seemed willing to confirm it.

When he was finished, one of the players leaned towards the owner and whispered something at his ear. "Hey boss, the girl he's describing, isn't it the person who made us won one million Ryou in one night?" The man in red nodded but stayed silent. He didn't want to give his information for nothing.

"A million you said… " Naruto repeated, taking the owner and his underlings by surprise. He had managed to hear a low murmur at the side of the room; he was no ordinary ninja. "Since you seem to know her, could you tell me when she came in this town?"

"Wait a second, kid." The boss cut in. "Nothing's free down here. If you want information, we could start by discussing of its price."

Naruto didn't like to be delayed in his missions. He didn't move but send them waves of chakra as well as a little bit of killer intent and his voice hardened. "Or, I could start by taking care of you one by one and make you confess what you know."

If they had not already been seated, some of the players might have fell, frightened by the surge of power displayed by the blond ninja. Still, they moved a little bit backwards, glancing at their boss and expecting him to do something.

The owner seemed less anxious than his fellow members but still not really relaxed and he tried to find a new agreement. "Okay I understand no need to be angry. Anyway, you would get into trouble when Haneda's police unit will found fifteen tortured corpses."

"If they found them…" The young ninja added, although he was decreasing the intensity of his chakra.

"Hm of course… Why don't we make a deal? You're in a gambling house so let's play. If you win, I'll answer any of your questions. And if you loose, you'll have to do a small job for me. Nothing dangerous, just a simple delivery. In both cases, you'll have your information without spending your money. So, what do you say?"

Naruto did not have much the choice, it was the only track he had for now and even that method was faster, he could guess that Minato wouldn't really appreciate that he used his justus. "Okay, I'll play."

In the room, the tension immediately seemed to lower and a smile of satisfaction appeared on the lips of the owner. The delivery he wanted to do was not exactly what you called a legal business and who could do it better than a shinobi, and he wouldn't even have to pay for it.

The players move back to leave enough space in the middle and the young boy sat down in front of the red jacket. The man spoke again. "Good, let's start with a game of poker. We'll only play with tokens, no real money. You know the rules?"

"… A game of what? "

The question surprised them a little. That a child didn't know how to play was quite normal, but that he didn't even knew the name of the game… The grin of the owner widened.

"Poker. I'll teach you."

°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°

Kakashi was back in front of the hotel was waiting for his team mates while reading his favourite book. At this time of the night, the streets were almost empty and when he raised the head at the sound of stepping noises, he saw his Sensei coming.

"You found something?" asked Arashi.

The masked ninja nodded. "I think that the Tsunade we're looking for is between 25 and 30 years old. Several people saw a young woman who fits the description, playing Pachinko for hours, but I don't know anything else."

"For me, I found the hotel where she stopped by." Yondaime continued while leaning on the wall. "But they told me she left one week ago and they had no idea about her next destination."

Kakashi look away from his book for a second. "Seems that we didn't move much from the starting point."

"Yeah I know, we'll have to look elsewhere." He sighed. "I hope that Naruto will have more useful news…"

°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°

They were only playing for twenty minutes after the explanations but the owner was already starting to regret it. His greedy smile had changed into a forced grin and his irritation was now almost visible. Despite all his experience and all the years he spend playing and gambling…

… He was losing.

And yet he was cheating. Kami-sama (3), he had never cheated this much in his whole life, discreetly taking or hiding new cards in his large pockets. The trick was rather easy to perform because Naruto, totally focused on his cards, didn't pay attention to his opponent's move. The kid had not strategy and was obviously playing for the first time since his game looked so hazardous. But he was incredibly lucky.

He always came out with the strongest hands and his pile of token was becoming bigger and bigger. His opponent never succeeded to overcome him and in his best turns, he only managed to show equal cards. The players didn't dare to make comments anymore and feared that their boss might burst out from anger. The man was wondering how to get out of this dead end when he heard the kid speaking to him.

"How long does this game last?"

Found. "Hum, it could last for several hours. I already saw game being continued over several days… Hm, it is problematic if you are in a hurry… Maybe we should try a shorter game…"

The young ninja had the unpleasant feeling that the owner was pulling his leg, and that was more than a simple feeling. He put back his cards on the ground. "Choose another game then. It doesn't matter which one as long as it's short."

"Very well. If that's your wish, the client has all rights." The man in red replied and also put away his cards. "Let's play with those dices. Fast, easy and fair." He said while taking out a goblet and two dices. Yes that game was also based on luck but now they were equal and he wouldn't have to bear the humiliation of losing at poker, a game were he was supposed to be unbeatable. He put the dices in the goblet and briefly shook it before turning it upside down on the floor. "What do you choose? Chô (even) or Han (odd)? "

While the boy was thinking, the owner caught a glimpse of the dices. The goblet had a hole which was only covered by his thumb. If the kid made the good choice, he would try to make a diversion and get to throw the dice once more. Moving it slightly, he saw the two numbers: four and five, Chô.

"Han." Naruto answered.

The owner had to hold back a smile. "Then I choose Chô; let's see what the dices decided." He withdrew the goblet slowly, enjoying the so long awaited victory. The first dice appeared. "Four and… " Then the second, with its five black spots. "... fo… five?!" He blinked several times, unable to believe what he was seeing.

"Nine, Han." the young ninja announced.

Some displeased murmurs ran among the players but they seemed too resigned quickly. A few of them glanced at their boss, not understanding why he looked so astonished. His eyes were opened so widely that his eyebrows almost disappear under his hair.

"But… but… how…" He whispered. Ht raised the head and gazed at the boy.

"You lost, respect your part of the deal."

After a few seconds, the man in red slowly put down the goblet, hiding the treacherous dice. He had seen the two fours, he was absolutely sure of that. He wondered if the kid had done something but he had not felt even the slightest trace of chakra. The owner was now completely lost, maybe it was him who needed glasses… He sighed deeply, wiping his face with his hand. "Oh okay, you won."

°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°

In front of the hotel, Minato was slowly growing impatient and couldn't help but feel a little bit worried. "He's taking a long time… Almost all the restaurants and bars are closed already, where did he go? " Unconsciously, he started pacing up and down. "Perhaps I should go to find him."

"There's no need to worry so much. Naruto is a ninja after all, he can take care of himself and he probably found something." Kakashi said, amused to watch his Sensei act like a hyper protective daddy.

Minato nodded and leaned back on the wall. "Yeah, you're right… "

A few minutes later, they saw a small silhouette appearing in the light of the hotel's lamps. "Ah, Naruto!"

The young blond ninja waved the hand while approaching. "Sorry for the delay."

"It's okay. So, did you learn something interesting?"

"I found the last gambling house Tsunade went. They said that she already left the town a while ago."

"Yes, we had the same results with Kakashi."

"Apparently she was furious to know that she had lost a million-"

"A million…?" simultaneously thought the two shinobi, sweatdropping.

"- and she would have crushed the owner as well as the building if her assistant had not held her up. When she left, they heard her cursing cheaters and swindler before saying that she was going elsewhere, to Kaze no Kuni."

This news left them a little puzzled. "To Kaze?" said a thoughtful Arashi. "That's not very precise… But it's not like we have the choice. We will probably found other tracks at the frontier and we could even ask for help if we continue until Suna.

"Do you think they will accept?" asked Kakashi. "After what happened a few months ago."

"I must admit that the actual relations between the villages are still a little tensed, but they were the ones to attack first and if they hope to rebuild the alliance, they should expect some requests coming from Konoha." Minato answered before walking to the hotel's entrance. "It's pointless to leave right now, we'll not be that much advanced. Let's sleep for a while; we'll leave the town at dawn.

Following his advice, the two shinobi also went up in their rooms to rest a little.

The newt day - or rather a few hours later, they left the city and went out through the Western Doors, in the direction of Kaze No Kuni. When they jumped in the trees, no one of them looked back to Haneda and yet, the underworld of game and gambling was going assist to the birth of a new legend. Those who remembered Densetsu No Kamo would not forget Un No Akuma, the Demon of Luck.

°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°

After one day and a half of travel in the forest, the three shinobi went back to a more normal way, and followed the main road which led to the frontier. Yondaime thought that it was better to enter the Wind Country by the most conventional way. He didn't want to create a misunderstanding with the ninjas of Kaze. They were definitely slower like that, but Minato took this time to teach his son a jutsu.

"I created it a few months before becoming Hokage and its one of my favourites techniques." He explained.

"What's its name?" asked Naruto, apparently interested.

"Rasengan." From his pocket, he took out a balloon he had bought before leaving Haneda and filled it with the water of his gourd. "Three stages are necessary to master this justu. The first one is about your chakra control; you must create a whirl powerful enough to make the balloon explode. Look, like that." In the centre of his right palm, he slowly gathered his chakra and the concentrated slowly its will chakra and the plastic envelope lost its shape at first and then it blew up.

"That will allow you to control rotation… " Yondaime gave his son a few more advices before giving him another balloon. His eyes stuck on his book, Kakashi saw half listening to the Rasengan lesson. He had already followed the same training but he was rather impatient to see how Naruto was going to carry out that technique.

"When you're done with this, I'll teach you the next stage." The former Hokage finished.

The boy was now walking slightly behind his teammates and was focused on the balloon full of water. He remembered the gestures of his fathers and then tried to make a whirl with his chakra.

Meanwhile, the two shinobis had just started a discussion about the _benefits _provided by the reading of Icha Icha Paradise when they heard the sound of a small explosion. Their heads turned round so quickly that Kakashi almost thought that he caught a stiff neck.

They saw the young ninja who was getting rid of the small bits of plastic before looking at them. "It's okay for the first stage?" He simply asked.

« ... Yes… Yes, that should be enough." Minato said, coming out of his astonishment. "Just show me again."

Naruto took another balloon and under the eyes of both shinobi, he performed the rotation, exactly like his father did a few moments earlier. Yondaime was surprised and thrilled at the same time to see that his son had such capacities of assimilation. "It's perfect! The next step consists in adding power." He said while unsealing several rubber balls from a scroll. He explained him the theory but without demonstrating this, waiting too see if he could find out the solution.

They weren't surprised –not that much surprised- when they heard the ball explode a few minutes later.

Minato then explained him the third step and how it asked him to master both power and rotation. Kakashi didn't say anything but did not hide a light admiration, knowing by experience that the A-ranked technique was not that easy to realize. Naruto seemed almost glad to learn that justu from his father, and even more to be able to perform it in front of him.

After the explanations, the young ninja began the last stage of Rasengan. Both shinobi when back to their conversation although they were distracted, awaiting the results of that promising training. Curiously, what happened next was totally the opposite of what they had expected.

Naruto was absolutely unable to confine the whirling energy in that tiny rubber ball and each time, it ended up exploding. Even if he tried to reduce the quantity of chakra, it was always too much and the weak plastic couldn't resist to the pressure.

Yondaime was now congratulating himself for preparing so many rubber balls because they didn't lasted very long. He had been a little surprised to see that the boy was blocking that much on this stage after succeeding in the first two with flying colours. He tried to explain him gain the theory but that didn't helped him much.

The young ninja was now specialized in the art of bursting balloons. Minato didn't want to come too discreetly in Kaze, well, that part of the plan was a big success… Every 5 or 10 minutes, the sound of a small explosion was echoing on the road, followed by a sudden flare of chakra. The two shinobi regularly felt a light draught behind them which was turning the pages of Kakashi's book.

The few travellers they crossed when a rubber ball exploded had watched them with a mix of curiosity and fun. Minato could prevent himself from teasing him a little. "Can you believe that, Kakashi… " He said loudly in a playful tone. "Uzumaki Naruto, son of Yondaime, stronger ninja of his generation and former ANBU, stays powerless in front of a mere rubber ball. »

Naruto managed to sense the mocking remark in his father's words and muttered an indistinct answer. Minato thought that he heard something like "… know that… much …chakra… damn bal-" The ball blew up again, and the two ninjas chuckled at the boy's antics. The series of explosions still lasted for several hours, before Yondaime asked him to stop. "We're almost in Kaze, there's no need to alert all the ninjas guarding the frontier. You'll train again later." Naruto nodded, he had just missed his 47th try anyway.

Minato had not been mistaken by supposing that Kaze No Kuni was watching closely its frontiers. They had just walked for a few minutes in their country when they were stopped by a group of ninja wearing the hitai-ate of Suna. They quickly surrounded the Leaf nins; theirs weapons were half drawn out but they didn't attack. The three shinobi had immediately slided in a defensive stance, slightly startled by so much hostility.

"Who are you? And why did you came in Kaze?" One of the Suna nins asked harshly.

"We are ninjas from Konoha." Minato answered. "We have been given a research mission and the person we must find probably came in this country."

The shinobi who had spoken was going to reply something but he was cut by another voice. "Put your weapons down. They are not our enemies." The man who approached was wearing a jacket of jounin, only the right part of his face was visible, the other was covered by a piece of cloth held by his hitai-ate.

"Haï." The group of Suna obeyed and moved back. The ninjas of Konoha relaxed, observing the patrol leader who stopped in front of them and looked more particularly at Kakashi.

"Hatake, glad to see you again in a better situation." He said in an almost friendly manner. (4) The ninja copier nodded.

"I am Baki, Jounin captain of Suna." He introduced himself to the two other shinobis. "Excuse the suspicion of my men, but I cannot really blame them. For a few months now, we had to constantly watch our frontiers against the ninjas of Oto."

"I understand, it is perfectly normal." Minato assured him.

"I know Hatake, but who are you?"

"My name is Kazama Arashi, Jounin and here is Uzumaki Naruto, An… Academy student."

If the rank of the young boy surprised Baki, he did not let it appear. "You said you were in a research mission, we could maybe help you."

Yondaime seemed glad to hear that. "We are looking for a kunoichi, Sannin no Tsunade. It seems that she came in Kaze and she should have arrived here a few days ago."

The name was not unknown to the ninjas and the Jounin asked if they knew something because he had not received any information on that yet.

"I've seen her, Sensei."

The group turned to the one who had spoken. It was a young kunoichi, barely older than Naruto. She blond hair and was wearing a purple outfit, decorated with a red belt. On her back, she carried a long steel weapon which seemed to be a giant fan. Baki asked her explanations.

"Last week, when I was with the other patrol, we met Tsunade-sama. She hit one of our team mates because he looked… a little too close but she answered all our questions. Apparently, she wanted to go to Suna but she decided on something else and went in the North, in Narita (5)."

"How many days of travel from here?" asked Arashi.

"Just a day and half, if you go at a fast pace." Baki answered. "Do you know the way?"

"Not really."

"Temari could guide you." He said, showing the girl. "She is familiar with the frontier area."

The kunoichi nodded, quite pleased to move a little from that place. Yondaime thanked the captain of Suna. "I hope that it isn't a problem for you?" He added.

"No at all. But if I may ask, why does Konoha suddenly seek the Sannin?"

Minato appreciated the skills of that ninja; the Jounin was clever, full of tact and diplomacy while being intransigent. He did not hesitate to answer, Suna would quickly found out anyway.

"She was chosen to be Godaime Hokage. Sarutobi Hiruzen has decided to resign."

That announcement truly surprised them all, but after a short reflexion, they found it quite justified. Tsunade was one of the most powerful kunoichi and she could fill the lack of authority that Sandaime had recently let appeared. Moreover she was in rather good terms with some of the leaders in Kaze; that could only benefit to the alliance.

"Very well, you will understand that I must immediately inform our Council." Baki said.

"Of course." Replied Minato. "We will leave now; we must catch up with Tsunade."

The Jounin nodded and made a sign to his team to leave place for the shinobi of Konoha, now accompanied by Temari.

°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°

The four ninjas had left rather quickly but it was almost the end of the afternoon and they stopped at twilight. They agreed with the kunoichi's advice, with the threat of the Oto nins, it was better to travel by day even if now there were less attacks than a few months ago. They put their tents in a clearing, at the border of the forest.

Minato and Kakashi decided to prepare the dinner. They didn't want to offend the young girl by asking her and they didn't want to try again Naruto's cooking. They had already tasted it the previous day but did not wish at all to experience it once more. When they had stopped, after leaving Haneda, the former ANBU had offer to prepare the meal and the two ninjas had gladly accepted.

Minato should have remembered the answer of his son when he asked him if he knew how to cook, a few days ago. "_Kind of…_" He said. After having seen and tasted that black-green and carbonized thing that Naruto had presented them, they had decided by a mutual agreement to never let him touch the meals again.

That did not bothered the young ninja, cooking was not exactly his favourite activity. While waiting, he moved a little further and went back to his training. This time, he was really going to show Minato that he could master the Rasengan. Holding the rubber ball in one hand, he closed his eyes and focused as he gathered his chakra. Slowly at first, then faster and faster, he began to make it whirl. Each second, he was adding more energy to the swirl while trying to contain the pressure.

The technique was working very well, up to a certain point. He opened his eyes just in time to see the balloon lose its shape and had to close them again them when it burst. The explosion startled the three other ninjas. Temari immediately raised and took out her fan. "Who's there?" She asked harshly, scanning the surrounding forest. Minato and Kakashi had also stood up and were back to back, but them, were respectively holding up a frying pan and a spoon.

They saw Naruto coming out from behind a tree. "Hm… sorry, it was only me. I made another balloon explode."

Both shinobi of Konoha sighed with relief and went back to their cooking that had started to burn. On the other hand, Temari did not seem to accept that so easily. She closed again her fan and abruptly heckled her new team mate. "You really think that it's the right to play with balloons?!"

"I was not playing. I tried to master a jutsu." He answered, not very proud of himself. it answered, not very proud. He was still a former ANBU, and what kind of ninja would go and create explosions in the middle of the night, and moreover in a place where they could came across enemies…

"A jutsu?? You're pretending to play ninja and yet you're making explosions in the middle of the night! In a place where we could encounter enemies moreover!" The girl shouted, looking daggers at him.

This time, Naruto was really surprised; she had just exactly expressed his thoughts. "Ah… yeah." Was all he managed to answer.

Temari seemed to lose her patience. Usually, she did not burst out of anger like that but she had spend the last seven weeks on mission at the frontier and tracking Oto nins under any weather had infuriated her. With one hand, she planted her fan in the ground. "That's all you can say, M. I'm not even a genin?! If you can't do better than that, go back and have fun in the Academy's sandbox! …"

She went on like that for several minutes. On other side of the clearing, Yondaime and his student where watching them, hardly holding back their laughter. It looked so much like a domestic dispute and the face so astonished of the young boy didn't helped either.

"What a bad temper." Minato said, chuckling. "She's exactly like Kushina."

"Or Tsunade." Kakashi added, his stomach was almost hurting, it was just too much fun.

"Poor Naruto… If he ever marries a girl like that, he'll stay astonished for a while. »

They found that simple thought so funny that it was twice more difficult form them to hold back their laughs. The young boy would have probably managed to hear their whispered comments if Temari had not increased the sound volume. But the anger of the kunoichi surprised him too. Of course, he had already faced the wrath of his superiors when he was ANBU but this anger felt different. Naruto didn't really know why but it seemed to lack true hatred.

His attention came back on Temari as she finished her speech. "And what would have done if ten Oto nins had appeared instead of me?!"

This question seemed to wake him up. He gazed at her, and his blood red orbs met the deep blue eyes of the kunoichi. "I would be dealing with that alone, as usual."

"What… " Temari was confuse for a few seconds by what sounded like pure arrogance to her and was preparing a scathing reply when she noticed the end of his sentence. "_As usual…?"_ She thought, feeling her sudden anger melt. "_What did he mean?_" She was going to ask him when the voice of Yondaime cut her.

"Let's eat now, it's already late."

He had not heard the answer of his son but took this moment of break to put an end to their 'conversation'. The two teens sat down without a word and ate rather quickly, still observed by the elder shinobis.

Then Naruto went first to keep watch while the others were going to rest a little. A light wind was blowing and the moon shining behind thin clouds, was diffusing a pale white gleam. The blond ninja jumped on a solid branch and sat down. His back leaning on the tree, letting slowly his thoughts drift in the calm night.

Thinking about that, if the kunoichi had surprised him that much it wasn't only because she had thought the same thing but also because she didn't appear to be afraid of him. Most of the people, especially children, seemed to fear him and were reluctant to talk to him. The daily reaction of the Academy students was the perfect example, they were constantly avoiding his gaze and even Shikamaru or Chôji, despite their obvious efforts, were still hesitant and uneasy in front of him. But Temari had reacted differently. In fact, it was the first time that a ninja of his age talked to him like that and even if the contact had not really been very friendly, he thought that maybe he shouldn't have reacted so coldly.

The words just came out automatically, it was something he had been used to say during his training of ANBU. When he did not succeeded an exercise, his instructor always harshly asked him the same thing. "And what would you have done if enemies had appeared instead of me. »

The answer was simple: He had to deal with that alone…

The young shinobi sat up straight when he sensed an other presence but relaxed when he saw that it was the kunoichi of Kaze. Their gazes crossed for a short moment, then she looked away and sat down on the ground, her back against the tree. Naruto wondered what she was doing here, it was still too early for her shift. He turned the head in her direction but didn't questioned her.

Temari didn't say anything at first, she took out her fan and put in on her lap to examine and clean it. There was an awkward silence between them for a few minutes. "Hey Naruto." She finally said, still observing the surrounding woods. "I… just wanted to apologise for what happened before."

The boy slightly raised his eyebrows; he did not really understood why she was saying that. For a short moment, the voice echoed again in his mind, asking for its freedom and a sudden pain clutched his chest. He managed to push that voice away, even he was still hurting he listened closely to the kunoichi.

"I should not have got so worked up." She continued. "It was not that serious and I probably made even more noise when I shouted." Her team mates of Suna would be surprised to hear her apologise like that, for they only knew the proud and strict kunoichi. However Temari could accept her errors when it was necessary.

"It's my fault too." Naruto admitted. "I should have pay more attention, even if I wanted to master that jutsu."

The apologies finished, a curious tone appeared in the voice of the kunoichi. "And you need a balloon for that?"

"It is a technique that demands control of the power and rotation of your chakra. It's easier with a spherical object." Strangely, he had not hesitated to told her about that justu even if he only knew her for a few hours. Perhaps because like Minato, he felt that he could trust the kunoichi…

"Rotation? Now that I think about it, I thought that I heard the faint sound of a tornado. That reminded me the sand swirls in the desert of Kaze."

"It was almost that, the jutsu is called Rasengan." (AN: the whirling sphere)

"Rasengan… " She repeated, thoughtful. With one hand she turned her fan and her gaze was drawn by one of the purple circle decorating the weapon. "_The sphere… tornado…_ Is it a Fûton jutsu?" The conversation became a little more technical but that didn't bothered the two ninjas.

"No." The former Anbu answered. "But it could be one…" He said after a short reflexion.

"Does it mean that you have an affinity for the wind?"

"Yes, and you too, according to your weapon."

"Correct. Can you control other elements?"

"No."

"Me neither. But I don't really care." She pushed back a small leaf that a light wind had left on her fan and it went flying with the breeze. "I like the wind, for me it brings back freedom." She whispered, lost in her memories.

"Freedom… " The young ninja repeated slowly.

Another silence followed their conversation. Temari calmly went back to the maintenance of her weapon, but on the other side, Naruto was silently fighting against that inner voice. The pain was now increasing and his breath was becoming heavy. The only time he had felt it so strong was when he had met Minato. But this time, he was totally aware of his surroundings as well as that what happened in his mind.

"_Free me!!! Ask her or free me now!! "_

The young ninja's resistance was weakening against that call but finally, nothing happened. As if that voice was condemned to remain in the darkest parts of his mind, without any hope of escaping.

At this moment, he heard the Suna kunoichi speaking to him again. "You're all right?" She had turned toward him, as look of concern appearing on her face as she saw that he was clutching his jacket. Naruto breathed deeply and once more, he attempted to drive away the pain, but it was unsuccessful. He tried to relax to appear fine and shook the head. "Yeah, I'm okay." He had said in an assured voice and although Temari had some doubts, she finally seemed to believe him and turned back.

However, the voice of his mind did not seem to accept this excuse and became even more intense. Whereas the real world blurred again, he saw something in the darkness. In fact it was more this thing which was looked at him. All he could see were two eyes, two irises which were intensely gazing at him.

"_I want to know_." He heard. After a few moments, the image became blurred and he found himself back in the peaceful forest.

It was the first time that it asked for something else than its freedom but curiously, he understood what it had meant. He had thought of that but didn't see why he should speak about it and yet… Minato had told him that a reason was not always needed so he made up his mind.

"Why…" He started hesitantly. Temari felt that he wanted to say something and keep silent while waiting for him to finish. After a short moment, the young ninja began again more firmly. "Why aren't you afraid of me?"

At first, that question left the kunoichi a bit puzzled but she quickly understood what he had meant. He was probably talking about his eyes. It was true that the dark red colour could be frightening. She sighed before answering. "I know somebody who looks like you."

Surprised by this answer, Naruto did not reply. A fresh breeze made their blond locks quiver and in the sky, thin dark clouds began to cover the moon. "I've always been with him and he had the same eyes as you." She continued. "I'm speaking f their colour but of the feeling they give. _The feeling that they're indifferent to the world, that they're cold and lifeless…_" Temari had not said that out loud but she had told him the truth. The blond shinobi really reminded her Gaara. They were both young ninjas and seemed to have seen too many horrors in their short lives. Their cold gazes, their hard voices, nothing of that belonged to childhood anymore.

But on another side, the two boys were different: her brother had a dangerous aura and an unstable mind that Naruto didn't possessed. The shinobi of Konoha seemed more calm and yet, even darker than his alter-ego of Suna. At this moment, an idea popped in her mind, maybe her team mate was also a Jinchûriki…

Temari thought of asking him but as he stayed silent, she decided against that. It was not something to take lightly and he should be the one to decide if he wanted to talk about that or not. The girl put her fan away and after glancing a last time at the ninja in the tree, she went a little further and continued to watch the surroundings.

The end of the night passed slowly. Three or four hours before dawn, Kakashi took their place. If he was surprised too see them here, he didn't say anything. But inside, he was smiling, Minato would surely find that very interesting.

°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°

The ninjas walked all day, alternating between the branches in the forests and the desert roads in the plains. When he could, Naruto trained again to master the Rasengan. Temari also seemed to take interest in it and tried to help him, which pleased the Yondaime. But despite his numerous attempts, he did not succeed.

The afternoon was almost ending when they arrived at Narita. The kunoichi had gave them a short description of the city: it possessed several famous monuments of Kaze and it was well-known for its hot springs and its traditional inns. The shinobi stopped in one of them, before going out to explore the city.

"Let's spread in groups of two." The Yellow Flash suggested. "You're coming with me, Kakashi?" He asked his student, leaving the young people without any choice than pairing up. Minato found that the two blond kids went well together and he hoped that this kunoichi, who seemed to understand Naruto, could have a good influence.

The two ninjas went down in the streets of Narita, seeking information and if possible the real Tsunade. They crossed the entire Southern district without finding anything. Temari had understood that Tsunade and her assistant were having a "touristic" trip and then decided to search in the old town, the historical heart of the city. The kunoichi had heard something about famous monument, the Himeji-Jô (6) and they started there.

A few minutes later, the two ninjas arrived on the esplanade of the Himeji castle but the problem was that there wasn't any castle. Instead, there was a huge mountain of ruins that several teams of workmen were clearing. Temari stopped one of them.

"Excuse me, what happened here?"

The worker stopped, putting down his wheelbarrow full of rubbles. "You're tourists, kids?"

"Yes." The kunoichi answered, not willing to complicate their situation.

"Well, you're not lucky. The castle was destroyed yesterday."

"Why? Because of an earthquake?"

"Not really. In fact nobody really knows why. There are some who say that an enormous snake came out from the foundations of the building, others who affirm that a ghost with yellow eyes casted a spell to brake down the castle, and others who thinks that both of them appeared in the same time. "

"Still talking nonsense to the tourists?" It was another workman who had spoken; then he turned to the young ninjas. "Hey kids, you shouldn't believe those silly stories?"

"Silly stories?!" The first man protested. "There're at least one hundred witnesses!"

The other simply shrugged. "One hundred blind men, yeah. I'm telling you, the truth is that the foundations were too old; the castle could have broken down any time. It just did it yesterday, that's all. The "witnesses" as you say, maybe saw a snake when the smoke flew away, nothing more."

"How could you see a giant snake in the dust?? You must be kidding! ... "

The kunoichi managed to slip a "Thank you very much" which was hardly noticed and the two ninjas walked away while the workmen continued to argue. Temari and Naruto went down in a street which lead towards the town centre area and talked about the information they had just received.

"What's that story about a snake… " Temari muttered.

Naruto had immediately recognized the one behind this disaster. "Orochimaru. It's him who made the building collapse." He revealed.

"What? How do you know that?"

"When he attacked Konoha, he summoned three giant snakes. And then the description of the yellow eyed ghost also fits him."

This news deeply worried the kunoichi. Kaze and Oto were now enemies; the presence of Sound village's chief on their territory could only be bad news. "I must inform Suna about that, they might not know. Let's return to the inn, I must go back." The young boy nodded and they walked faster.

Arrived at the inn, Temari gathered her things and was going to leave the ninjas saw a dog stop in front of them. Curiously, it was wearing some kind of jacket but also the hitai-ate of Konoha. And what was even more surprising was to hear it talk.

"Hi, I come on behalf of Kakashi. My name is Pakkun." He said.

"You are a summon?" Naruto asked, and the dog nodded. "What's going on?"

"Kakashi sends me to tell you that they found the Sannin. They're waiting for you in a bar in the Northern district. Come, I'll show you the way."

Temari interfered. "I can't go. I just learned that Orochimaru came here and-"

"I'm aware of that." Pakkun cut. "Apparently, Tsunade-sama has something to do with that. But I don't know much more, so come, they'll explain you the details."

The kunoichi seemed to hesitate, a little bit surprised by those revelations. "One hour or two shouldn't delay you that much and it's better to back to Suna with the maximum of information." The blond shinobi said.

The girl just thought about that for a few seconds. "Yeah, you're right." She turned to the dog. "Okay then, lead us."

"Yosh, follow me." After that, the three ninjas left again toward the city.

°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°

A few minutes later, they arrived in front of a restaurant. Pakkun brought them at the entrance and then left, disappearing in a small cloud of smoke. When they entered, they spotted their team mates at the other end of the room. The four people raised the head at their arrival.

"Ah Naruto, Temari there you are. Come, sit down." Minato offered.

They took a chair and because the table was a little bit too small for six persons, Naruto, Naruto sat down slightly behind his team mate. In front of them was a brown haired young woman, wearing a black kimono with beige edging. She introduced herself as Shizune, the Sannin's assistant. Beside her was Tsunade. She glanced at the young ninjas for a few seconds but quickly looked away before drinking her cup of sake in one shot. Her cheeks were already a little red and she seemed in a dreadful mood.

Minato tried to go back to the conversation they had started. "So Tsunade, what is your answer? You must understand that the village needs you. Please, nobody can't do it anymore…"

The kunoichi had still a mind clear enough to not call him Minato but her voice truly expressed her annoyance. "I said no, Arashi. You could get along without me as you did during all these years. I don't see why I should return in this damn village."

"Tsunade-sama…" Shizune whispered, looking saddened.

"I don't want to be Hokage." The Sannin continued while pouring sake in her cup, her eyes unfocused. "Only fools or idiots would like such a job. They dream to be Hokage, they fight for it and at end, they just loose their life! To give everything for the village… what a silly way to die…"

The ninjas were somehow shocked by those words; they denied the very foundation of the job of Hokage and shinobi. Minato seemed hurt by what he was hearing.

"How can you say that, Tsunade?"

She did not answer. "Why don't you go and ask Jiraiya?!"

"He's even more unreachable than you. And besides, it's not him who was chosen by the Council and the Daimyô. The one they appointed is Senju Tsunade."

"I already told you no. The village stole everything from me and it's not there that I'll find again what I lost." She replied.

"And you think that Orochimaru will be able to help you?"

The atmosphere became even more tensed after that question; Sannin slowly put down her cup glared suspiciously at Arashi. "What makes you think that he has something to do with that?"

"It's useless to deny it, Tsunade. I'm sure of my information."

Before finding the Sannin, they had met Shizune and the young woman had had enough time to tell them what had happened the day before.

"I have nothing to say to you." The blond kunoichi finally sighed.

Hearing those words, an angry voice rose among the ninja. It was Temari and although she was doing her best to stay calm and polite, she couldn't remain silent anymore. "Excuse me but you cannot keep that for you!"

Tsunade looked at her. "I know you, you're one of the kunoichi guarding the frontier... What do want brat?"

"Oto No Kuni betrayed us; we have to know what Orochimaru is preparing against Kaze. You must tell us!" The girl had stood up and hit the table with her hands.

Sannin shrugged and took again her cup. "If that can reassure you, they're not preparing anything. He's only after me."

"What? But the shinobis of Oto…"

"They're doing that for themselves. After all, most of them are missing nins and they only seek revenge. Orochimaru just let them do; they're only a small part of his troops and this way, he allows fear to persist on Kaze."

"The Council of Suna knows it." Shizune added. "We already send them a message."

"Oh, I see… I guess it's okay then…" Temari said, slowly sitting back. She was not completely reassured but those two kunoichi seemed to be telling the truth.

Watching her behaviour, Yondaime could only smile. She was an admirable ninja who was truly worried about her village's sake. If only the other blond kunoichi could act in the same way… Once more, he tried to persuade her. "And about Konoha, you could think again Tsuna-"

"I'm finish thinking." The Sanin cut, suddenly putting down the bottle of sake. "You're wasting your time Minato, I won't change my mind!" Saying that, she stood up and left the restaurant, stomping.

The ninjas, surprised by her sudden departure, turned to Shizune who sighed deeply. "I'm sorry… She's like that since yesterday; the meeting with Orochimaru reminded her very bad memories."

Temari and Kakashi wondered what she meant and Minato wiped his face with his had, he seemed a little tired. "I should have been more tactful, I was too direct."

The brown kunoichi gave him an encouraging smile. "We just need to give her some time." Then she changed the topic of their conversation. "How long have you been searching for us?"

Minato was drinking so Kakashi answered her. "Three days. Before coming in Kaze, we passed by Haneda. The bad luck of Densetsu No Kamo really helped us."

Shizune sweat dropped. "One million… she lost one million…" She shook the head, trying to forget that misadventure. "You looked for the hotel where we stopped?"

"Yes, and we found it. Why?"

"Three days ago, I lost one of my weapons. It was a wrist weapon which allowed me to throw senbons, I hoped that they would have found it and gave it to you."

"Sorry, but they didn't say anything about that." Yondaime said.

"Never mind then, I'll just buy another one." She sighed. "I'm going back now, and what will you do?"

"We'll return to the in for now. Tomorrow, I'll try again to convince Tsunade." The four ninja stood up and at this moment, Minato noticed something. "Where's Naruto?"

Suddenly realizing his absence, they looked around them, but they had to admit that the young shinobi had indeed disappeared.

°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°

In the quiet streets of Narita, a young boy was walking toward the door of the city. Naruto had left discreetly, shortly after the Sannin, when Shizune had talked about those "very bad memories". He was still unsure of the reason that had pushed him to act like this…

Something had struck him in the words of Tsunade. When she had talked about the fools who dreamed to be Hokage, her dark eyes had seemed to betray what her voice was trying to express. They were filled with an indomitable light and gave him the same feeling that the ones he saw in his mind. It was a confusing coincidence and the boy really wanted to know what mysteries this gaze was hiding.

Naruto suddenly stopped. He "wanted to know"? He wanted it for himself? It was the first time that the young shinobi really wished to know… No, not the first time. He had felt the same thing when he had tried to master the Rasengan. Despite the ninja education he had received, which preached discretion above all, he had not been able to do anything but try again to show Minato. And now, he had slipped out of the restaurant to find Tsunade.

"I want to know… " He whispered, as if he wished to convince himself that he was the one to think and that it wasn't something he had been ordered to do. The young shinobi walked a little faster, ignoring the sharp pain in his chest. It had barely ever left him since yesterday, sometimes decreasing only to come back stronger. He stopped thinking about that when he finally spotted the Sannin.

°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°

Tsunade had sat on the lower beam of the large gate and she was gazing at her pendant without really seeing it. Her eyes were stuck in the past, searching for the memories of old times. Times when her little brother and her lover were still alive. She closed her fist around the crystal, all of that had come to an end. Nawaki and Dan had died with their dreams.

At this moment, she felt a presence and was surprised to see a dark silhouette landing on the opposite of the beam.

"Who are… oh it's you." She said as she distinguished the ninja. His blond hairs were clearly recognizable, as well as his crimson eyes. "What are you doing here gaki?"

While they had been waiting for the two young ninjas, Arashi –who had happened to be Minato-, had talked to her about his son. She had learned several things on his past, particularly the fact that he was a former Anbu. Of course, she hadn't expected him to be a cheerful kid but when she heard his cold voice, when he had introduced himself, it had only increased her dislike of Konoha.

"Why did you lie before?" He asked bluntly.

"What are you talking about?"

"You said that being Hokage, dying for the village was a stupid thing. You do not really believe that." He said, and it was not a question.

"… What are you saying? Of course I believe that!"

"No." He himself could hardly believe that he was talking like to the kunoichi of the Sannin. It was as if he wasn't the one to speak. But he knew that deep inside, they were his, and only his thoughts. At this moment, this desire to know, recently discovered, was way stronger than the precepts of shinobi than he had received.

"And how could you know that?!"

"Your eyes. They're saying the opposite."

This answer left her speechless. Her eyes… she did not understand what he meant. Was it possible that she had seemed to say those things unwillingly? However, she was sure…

"In fact, you think like theses idiots and fools. You do not find them stupid." He finished.

She was amazed, the same ninja who had seemed so indifferent a few minutes ago was now telling her what she felt truly. Him, who had been trained to erase his feelings, how could he read hers so easily?

Because he was indeed telling the truth. Tsunade opened the mouth to protest but couldn't say anything. The more she thought about it, the more she realized that she had always admired Nawaki and Dan for their tenacity, their courage, their strength of will. During several minutes, memories flooded her mind. She saw her brother, the day of his birthday and Dan, the day of their first meeting.

"_I am too old for birthday gifts…. Grandfather's necklace, thanks Neechan! … I will be Hokage and I will protect Konoha! …_ "

"_I understand what you feel, I lost my sister during that war… this is why I want to be Hokage… I will protect its inhabitants…_ "

And she, what did she say at that time? The Sannin had encouraged them, she had supported their dreams. She was as foolish as they had been.

"Why did you lie?" Naruto asked again. The sound of his voice pulled the kunoichi out of her thoughts.

"Why…" A weak smile appeared on the lips of the kunoichi. "I don't know. My brother and my fiancé both dreamed to be Hokage, when they died… I wanted to forget everything, to leave everything behind and to never have to face them again. I try to hide from myself." She raised her pendant in front of her eyes. "But you just reminded me, we can't hide our feelings forever…"

The young ninja frowned; hide their feelings was something shinobis were basically supposed to do. Now, it was him who didn't understand what the Sannin wanted to say. Feeling the voice weakening, he pushed it back again.

"Tell me…" Said Tsunade, turning to him. "What is your dream?" She asked him with a mix of concern and hope.

Naruto had never thought of it, it was still a concept too foreign for him. He shook the head. "I don't know."

"I see…" She said in a soft voice. It saddened her to see that this young ninja, who reminded her Nawaki, did not even know what it was to have a dream. Now she really began to imagine how Minato could have been distraught when he had seen his son. She still remembered how happy he had been to know that he was going to be a father. Tsunade had now allayed her old memories but she still did not wish to go back to the village.

Naruto had received the answer to his question but it was a story of feelings that he couldn't really understand. "Thank you for answering me, Tsunade-sama." He said, slightly bowing the head.

The Sannin was surprised to be called like that. His father only used Tsunade or Baa-chan when he wanted to tease her. She stood up and affectionately stroked his blond hairs. "You can call me Tsunade, gaki."

"… Haï."

He moved to jump off the beam but as soon as he turned back, she called him again.

"Naruto." She had crossed her arms and gave him a warm smile. "Thanks." After that; she went down the gate and walked toward the downtown area.

He wondered why she had thanked him but did not say anything and left in the opposite direction.

°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°

To go back at the inn, which was at the border of Narita, he had to cross a huge park which was almost surrounding the whole town and to go faster, he decided to cut through a long clump of trees.

While he was thinking about the previous conversation with Tsunade as well as about the excuse he would have to give to Minato, he heard metallic clashes and felt waves of chakra. His ninja reflexes immediately came back and he began to run, silently hiding in the shadow.

The noises were becoming stronger as he went further. There was no doubt now, a fight of shinobis was going on a few meters ahead. At this moment, he heard a feminine voice shouting the name of her justu. "Kamaitachi! (7)" Right away, an enormous gust of wind rushed into the clearing and he had to crouch and use his chakra to hold on the ground otherwise he may have been carried away.

He recognized the voice of Temari and when the body of a ninja landed not far from him, he managed to see his hitai-ate. It was signed with the symbol of Oto. He took out his three prolonged kunaï and jumped on the trees. A few seconds later, he saw the kunoichi of Suna. She was facing the last two ninjas but because they were close to her position, she had difficulties to use her wind justu which were mainly long range techniques.

She still managed to defeat the most distant and on his side, the young shinobi used his kunaï to appear behind the second and kill him with a precise blow in the back of the neck. Temari turned round at the sound of a flash was relieved to see her team mate.

"It's you Naruto? Where have you been?" The kunoichi did not even leave him time to answer. "Whatever. For now, we have to find the two others. The ninjas of Oto ambushed us at the exit of the city, we were separate but they should not be very far."

"Okay. Which direction? "

"I think I saw Kakashi near the inn but I couldn't follow Arashi."

"I'll try to find him, can you search for Kakashi?"

"No problem."

After this short exchange, the two ninjas left in different directions. Naruto came from North, the city was at the West and the inn was at the East. He had not heard other sounds of fights on his way and doubted that the ninjas would go back besides the crowded city. Temari would take care of the inn area so he decided to continue straight, toward the South.

It quickly appeared to be a good choice because only after two or three minutes, another battle came in sight. A relatively important group of ninjas was attacking a blond haired shinobi. Naruto hadn't been located yet so he used this advantage to surprise them by throwing several kunaïs, shurikens and senbons which mortally struck the shinobi who were standing far of Yondaime.

"Watch out, there's another one!" An Oto nin shouted before being killed by a kunaï in the neck.

Both shinobi of Konoha used this moment of panic to eliminate several opponents.

"Naruto! You're okay?" Minato called when they were near enough.

"Yeah. Your jutsu?"

They were now back to back and faced a circle made by almost fifty enemies. "I know." Yondaime whispered. "One of them had his body covered with black marks, he managed to hit me with a strange genjutsu and I lost control of the Henge. I killed him but I have the feeling that they were aware that I was Yondaime."

"How they could they know?"

"No idea. Probably Orochimaru's doing, although I don't understand how he would know. (8) For now, we have to deal with them."

The two blond ninjas threw their kunaïs and saying in the same time "Hiraishin no Jutsu!", they attacked together. The fight was intense, Yondaime and Naruto were very strong but the shinobis of the Sound were though, well trained and fought furiously.

The former was starting to be short of breath but his blows didn't get weaker. The three branched kunaï had slipped out of his hand when a ninja had throw out an enormous Suiton justu, and he did not know where it had fallen. Because the use of the Hiraishin asked him to know the weapon's position, he was forced to use normal kunaïs. (9)

After several minutes of fierce fighting, Naruto began to see the number of his enemies decrease significantly. He used a speed technique, "Kaze Tsurugi no Jutsu." and managed to defeat three of the four remaining ninjas. For the last one, he had another idea. He gathered his chakra in his right hand and created a blue sphere. "Rasengan!" He shouted, hitting his opponent in the stomach.

The shock sent him hurtling to the ground a few meters away. Naruto hadn't master completely the technique but judging the aspect of the shinobi; the exploding sphere had been enough to defeat him.

The young boy caught his breath again after the battle and glanced at his father who was fighting further in the woods. His heart almost missed a beat when he saw the scene.

Minato had almost finished and was now dealing with his 30th opponent. What he had not seen was a ninja with black marks that he thought and who should be dead, going to attack him in the back. Naruto dashed forward and saw that his father was too close to dodge in time and that his special kunaï was stuck in the ground, two meters behind him.

The ninja of Oto raised an arm, on which was tied a wrist weapon, with several holes. He aimed at the older blond ninja and pulling the strings, he sent the deadly senbons.

"HIRAISHIN!" A distant voice yelled.

The whistling sound of the metallic weapons crossed the flash and the senbons violently hit the blond ninja. Yondaime had just eliminated his enemy and turned round at the sound, characteristic of sin jutsu. What he saw made his blood run cold.

"NARUTO!!"

TBC...

* * *

That the first, and probably the last cliffhanger I'm going to write, seeing all the reviews I recieved for the french version^^

So, how was the chap? No quotas on reviews!

(1) Haneda: name of a big airport in Tokyô  
(2) Gaki: brat  
(3) Kami: god  
(4) I don't really remember if Kakahsi and Baki are friends in the manga, let's say they are^^  
(5) Narita: name the another big airport in Tokyô  
(6) Himeji: famous castle in Japan, in the prefecture of Hyôgo (where there's Kobe). Jô=castle.  
(7) Kamaitachi: Wind Blades  
(8) Orochimaru was already gone when Shodaime and Nidaime died, and Yondaime remained.  
(9) **InARealPickle**: okay, maybe I did forgot some details... my bad.. well, in my fic they'll have to know where the kunaï, thanks for telling though.

See ya!


	7. Chap 6: Coming Back

Hi! here goes chapter 6 after the very hated but yet so loved cliffhanger^^

Thanks a LOT for all your reviews, I really appreciate them.  
no scratch that, I love them!!

**Hektols**: yes I meant that^^

And besides the release of this chap, I have an other good news,

let me introduce you to my new Beta: the great, the incredible, the one and only....

°*°*° !!! _deanine_ !!! °*°*°

Thanks to her, the few errors left will be corrected  
this is the first chap to be beated but I'll update the previous one soon, for now,

Enjoy!

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto, Masashi Kishimoto does.

__

* * *

_Forgotten Prisoner_

_Chap 5:_

_"HIRAISHIN!" A distant voice yelled._

_The whistling sound of metallic weapons crossed the flash and the senbons violently hit the blond ninja. Yondaime had just eliminated his enemy and turned round at the sound, characteristic of sin jutsu. What he saw made his blood run cold._

_"NARUTO!!"_

_Chapter 6: Coming Back_

He saw the Oto nin, who should have been unable to move, with his arm still extended toward his young son. Naruto staggered and Yondaime rushed forward, catching him half a second before he touched the ground. Minato saw with horror that he had received several senbons, at least five, which were soaked in a strange purple liquid. Poison for sure. Naruto was trying to extract the thin needles but his hands were already shaking too much and he had breathing difficulties.

The former Hokage swore, apparently the poison was powerful and spread fast. He took out the senbons as delicately as he could.

"Naruto! Are you okay?!"

The question was stupid, it was obvious that he was not okay at all but he had at least hoped that Naruto could answer him. Unfortunately, it did not happen. Then Yondaime heard a metallic sound behind him and turning round, he saw the Oto nin preparing again his weapon to launch another attack. Minato disarmed him with a simple kunaï.

"What have you done?!" He yelled. "What kind of poison is that? Spit it out!"

The enemy's eyes were filled with sheer fury. "Or what, you're going to kill me? Even if you already failed once?!" He spat in a ferocious voice. The black marks covering his body were now shining in a reddish gleam and began to spread on his face. His strength seemed to have returned and the man tried to stand up.

But before Minato could react, the shinobi began to scream out of pain and heavily fell on the ground, still clutching his head with his hands as if the dark marks were burning him. After a last choked cry, he stayed unmoving, this time he really seemed dead.

The Hokage had witnessed the strange scene, astonished and horrified. But his attention quickly moved back to Naruto's current state. The boy seemed even paler and couldn't stifle a faint whimper of pain.

"Don't move, I'll try to heal you!"

Saying that, he placed a hand over the body of his son. The senbons had hit his right leg as well as his two arms. Naruto had managed to catch one of the weapons but another had touched the left side of his stomach and the last was stuck five centimetres besides his heart. It was that wound which worried him the most. His chakra glowed in a light green gleam and began to heal his wound.

The young ninja was fighting to stay conscious. The poison was spearing very quickly, he felt like his whole body was burning and was becoming more and more heavy. Yondaime frowned, even if the plea had closed up, his face was still abnormally pale. He saw the blood red eyes of the young boy looking somewhere behind him.

At this moment, he sensed a presence and turned round in an instant. Fortunately, the one who was coming was not an enemy.

"Kakashi!" The Hokage shouted out, relieved to see his student.

"At last I find you, Sensei." Then he caught sight of the young boy and his voice took a serious tone. "What happened here?"

Before he could answer, another silhouette came out from the shadows behind the masked ninja. The kunoichi walked between the trees and stopped when she saw the shinobis. "Who are you?" She immediately asked Minato. "And have you done to Naruto?"

Yondaime realized that the kunoichi had never seen his real appearance but there wasn't time for chatting. "It's me, Arashi. I'll explain you later but you can trust me."

The young girl glanced at Kakashi who simply nodded and she held back her questions for now.

"Naruto has been poisoned and it's not something that I can heal." Minato said, his voice filled with worry. "Do you have medical skills?" He asked Temari.

The shook the head, at this moment she was regretting the fact that she had only received a training of fighting ninja. "No, but I could go and bring back Tsunade-sama. I heard that she's a great medic ninja."

"That's right. I'll come with you, she might have been ambushed too." replied Kakashi.

"All right, but hurry up, it's better for him to stay still otherwise the poison would spread even faster but I don't how much time he can bear it." Yondaime whispered.

As soon as he said that, the two shinobi dashed again into the woods, forgetting their tired muscles when the life of their comrade was threatened. The young Hokage's attention went back on the wounded ninja. The boy was tightly clutching his jacket, just where the senbon had missed narrowly his heart and his eyes were now closed under the incredible pain.

"Naruto! Naruto, hang on!" Minato knew that if he fell unconscious now, he might never wake up again. That's why he didn't stop talking to him. "Naruto please, you can't give up." He said; try to heal him in the same time.

But it wasn't working and now, he feared that Tsunade would come too late. The young Hokage hardly held back his desperate tears, unable to drive that dreadful idea out of his mind. He had never been as sad as he had the day he sealed the fox demon, knowing that he was leaving his only son. And now, he might lose him again, and it was entirely his fault. Naruto had protected him by standing between him and the ninja, if he succumbed, Minato would never forgive himself.

"I will not let you die!" He cried.

The young ninja seemed to hear those last words. His eyelids faintly twitched and with great efforts, he managed to open his eyes again and crossed his father's gaze. The blond man was stricken back by their colour. From dark red, they were slowly enlightened to a light violet tint.

°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°

On the other side, Kakashi and Temari were running as fast as they could to the opposite door of Narita. They were almost there when suddenly the ground violently shook. The two ninjas lost balance and grabbed a near branch but although the tremor was powerful, it didn't last long.

"What was that? An earthquake?"

"No, I rather think that we're getting close to some Sannin."

The kunoichi's eyes winded a bit out of surprise, but she didn't say anything. They moved on right after, sometimes holding on the trees when the ground was shaking. A few minutes later, they arrived on the battle field and saw Tsunade taking care of a least a half dozen of enemies in the same time.

The ground was spotted with of wholes more or less deep which were proved well that the two kunoichi were kicking ass. Shizune was fighting with two kodachi (1) but although she had already beaten several ninja, she seemed a bit tired.

Temari and Kakashi joined the battle too and a while after, all the Oto shinobis were lying dead on the ground. Then the four ninjas gathered again.

" Thanks for the help." Tsunade said them. "But why did you come back? Were you attacked too?"

Kakashi opened the mouth to answer but he was deviance by the kunoichi of Suna. « Yes but there's something more important. Naruto is badly wounded and…"

"What?"

"…and he could die if you don't heal him."

The Sannin didn't hesitate a single second. She only knew the young boy for a couple of hours but one thing was sure, he had saved her from her endless torments and she wouldn't abandon him.

"Where is he?"

"I'll guide you, follow me." replied Temari and she turned round right away.

Tsunade was running just besides her and Shizune and Kakashi, who seemed a bit surprised, were closely following the two blonde kunoichis. The assistant had not really understood why the Sannin had come back in a good mood after the restaurant conversation. Seeing her now, Naruto might have something to do with that. The other shinobi was almost thinking the same thing but if he couldn't suppress a small grin, it was for another reason.

The way Temari had cut him to explain their situation showed that she was truly worried for the young ninja. The boy probably didn't think that during these few days, he had made a new friend. And Kakashi hoped that he wouldn't lose her now.

°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°

Tsunade and the others wouldn't be long to come but Yondaime couldn't be know that.

"Naruto? What's going on?"

The boy still didn't answer him and now he wasn't moving anymore. Only his eyes were wide open as their irises shone in a violet light. In fact, Naruto was perfectly aware of his surroundings, just not of the external world.

Minato had told him something and after that, he hadn't sensed anything else. All he could see was darkness and all he could hear were sounds of metallic clashes which echoed louder and louder. As if chains were hit on some kinds of iron bars. This time, he didn't even try to resist, leaving his mind drifting in the dark.

In the real world, the Sannin had just arrived and had frozen at the sight of the two blond shinobi. The boy looked a little like Nawaki but lying like that on the ground, wounded, he reminded her Dan. The night he died.

"Tsunade!" She was pulled out of her thoughts by the voice of Yondaime. Pulling herself together, she kneeled besides the young ninja.

"Put him down Minato." The medic ordered. "Which kind of weapon hit him? How long?"

The Hokage gave her one of the senbons. "Already ten minutes."

The Sannin examined the weapon, being careful not to touch the dark liquid. The ninjas saw her frowned. "Tch… I know that, one of Orochimaru's most dangerous poisons. It's going to be difficult and it will also depend on his own will but I'll heal him for sure."

Her light brown eyes, filled with anew determination, crossed the anxious gazed of the young Hokage.

"I promise." She assured.

Minato gave her a faint smile. "I trust you."

Tsunade nodded and not losing more time, she gathered her chakra. Her palms began to glow in a light green glimmer and she placed her hands above the body of Naruto to estimate the seriousness of his wounds. After a few seconds, she took his wrist and became alarmed to feel his pulse so weak.

She glanced at his eyes, not understanding why they had taken this violet tint. However, Tsunade knew that it was not an effect of the poison so she assumed that the cause was probably the fox demon.

Two of her fingers gleamed more intensely and she cut his T-shirt in two. Unsurprisingly, she saw the seal of the Kyûbi appearing on the boy's stomach but that wasn't the most important thing for now.

"What is… that…?" whispered Minato. The Sannin followed his gaze and noticed something really unexpected.

A seal…

On the heart of the young ninja was spread a second seal, smaller but incredibly more complicated that the one of Yondaime. Tsunade could barely distinguish the form of a triangle surrounded by several circles in the web of signs and kanjis. She didn't know this seal but looking at the former Hokage, she saw that he didn't seem to understand much more.

"We'll take care of that later, Minato." She said in a firm voice.

He could only nod, totally astonished by what they had just discovered. He was absolutely sure that his son had never carried such a seal before. "_That means it was created recently?_" Yondaime questioned himself.

But that assumption didn't seemed really credible. He was almost sure that Naruto would have told him and besides, he knew that the young ninja didn't have much experience in the domain of Fûinjutsu (2). So where did it come from… Minato was a bit lost and could think properly in this situation.

He wasn't the only one in that case, behind him; Kakashi and Shizune were asking themselves almost the same questions. The brown haired kunoichi was willing to help her Sensei but she didn't that poison at all and would have probably been a burden to the Sannin. She turned to the masked ninja. "While Tsunade-sama is healing him, we should better warn the authorities of Narita."

"I agree, we're not really helpful here anyway."

They knew that their Sensei had heard them and after a small nod from the former Hokage, they discreetly went back to the town.

Temari didn't thought that following them would be very useful, and she didn't feel like doing it either. She was probably the most abashed in the whole thing.

The Suna kunoichi still didn't really know who this 'Minato' was. She suspected that he could be a relative of Naruto, seeing him so worried. All the more, both shinobi looked so much alike. But then, why had he taken another appearance…

And what was the meaning of those two seals? One looked a little like the one of her brother, but the other was very strange. All of that was still a mystery and she would wait for her team mate to be out of danger before asking them any question.

The young girl sighed, even if she couldn't learn anything, she still hoped that he would heal quickly. Usually, she wasn't so friendly but for once, she had easily integrated the team. She appreciated Naruto and was appalled to think that he could…

She shook the head, in that kind of situation, the best thing to do was to stay calm and not think nonsense.

Temari hated to feel useless but now, she could only wait. She sat down, leaning her back against a tree and folded her legs. Her gaze embraced the clearing where the faint green gleam of Tsunade's hands was enlightening the three ninjas in the surrounding darkness.

°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°

Darkness… That was all he could see. He felt like he was floating in a void space. And he could hear anything, not even that strange voice that had inhabited him for a few months. He remembered having been touched by the senbons, having felt an unbearable pain then all had turned black. Maybe he had died in the end…

Thinking of that didn't bother him that much. He was a shinobi and an Anbu after all, he could really fear the death, which he had been in close contact with for so long. And at least, he would have given his life to protect-

"_Yondaime!"_

He didn't really know if it was him or the voice who had talked but that thought seemed to wake him up. The surrounding darkness suddenly seemed to enlighten slightly and he saw those cerulean blue eyes appear again. They were gazing at him so intensely that even if he had wished to, he couldn't look away.

_He said that he wouldn't let me die…_

That time, it wasn't his words. It wasn't a question either. That voice, whatever it could be, wasn't wavering and he wanted to believe it.

Since ever, he had been a secret weapon, a ninja under the Council orders and his own life didn't matter much to him. Even if they hated him, he was useful and he knew that they would never have let him die. But it was the first time that somebody told him so directly and without ulterior motives.

The difference was probably here. Minato was sincere…

Yondaime wasn't aiming for power and didn't use anybody to accomplish his goals, unlike the Council he had always known. This time, he felt that he was really accepted for himself and not only for his skills as a shinobi. Then maybe such a life was worth living…

The light became brighter as the blue orbs were disappearing in its éclat. In that blinding whiteness echoed a last whispered.

"…_I'm going back…"_

°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°

Slowly, Naruto began to sense again the feeling of the real world. It seemed that he was lying on a futon, under a blanket. He felt a light wind stroking his face, heard the sound of a near fûrin (3) and finally decided to open his eyes.

As expected, the first thing that he saw was the ceiling. The gleam of the lamp up there was beginning to melt with the light of the rising sun. It was probably very early since the night wasn't totally over.

The boy heard breathing sounds just besides him. Turing his head to the left, he caught sight of Minato. The young Hokage was sitting near his bed, his head resting on a folded arm and apparently, he had fallen asleep on low bedside table. He had light rings under his eyes and Naruto tried to not wake him up.

In fact, he realized that the pain had considerably faded and supporting on his elbow, he sat back on his futon. His gaze went over the whole room and as he expected, he saw that they were in the big room that they had rented in the inn. What surprised him however was to see that somebody else was sleeping here. In the opposite corner, Temari had stretched her legs and her head was leaning on the wall. She had kept her arm folded and her fan within reach.

Naruto lift his head up and once he was done, he saw Kakashi through the window. The Jounin was resting against a tree, one leg tucked under him. At first, he couldn't really see if he was sleeping or not because his silvery hairs were covering the top of his face, as if the mask and the hitai-ate were not enough. But at the sight of his head bending and his book half open on the ground, he realized that Kakashi was also taking a nap.

The young ninja found the scene quite strange. The three shinobis seemed really tired, as if they had stayed up for a long time. A part of him was wondering why but the other knew, or at least hoped that it was because they were worried. Without noticing it, that single thought made the hint of a smile appear on his lips.

As another gust of wind was refreshing the room, he felt a little cold. He was only wearing a light T-shirt and his boxers over his bandages. His clothes were nowhere to be seen and he tried to stand up to search in the other room. He managed to get back on his two feet and walked until the sliding door that he opened without making any noise.

He was just beginning to put his clothes on when he heard voices and the door of the other room opening.

"See, they're still sleep- Naruto? Naruto?! Minato!! Wake up!"

"Uh? What's-"

"Where is he?"

"Who- Naruto!!"

They seemed perfectly awake now but all of that had happened to fast that the young boy, a bit surprised that they were making such a fuss, hadn't even enough time to tell them that he was just here. Pulled out of his surprise by other shouts, he quickly buttoned his jacket and opened again the door.

"Kakashi did you saw somebody coming out?" was asking Minato.

"No, he isn't-"

"If you're talking about me, I'm right here."

All their head immediately turned to him and an evident relief appeared on their faces.

"Don't scare us like that gaki..." began Tsunade. "You… Why are you already out of your bed?"

"Well… I'm alright now. Thanks to you, Tsunade-sa..sensei. (4)"

The Sannin had well sensed that he wanted to say –_sama_ at the beginning and was glad that he had changed. It had been a long time that she hadn't been called _sensei_. She held back a grin and put her hands on her hips. "You want me to believe that one day has been enough for you to heal from a deadly wound? Caused by the one of the most powerful poison I know?"

The young ninja didn't really know what to answer. He glanced at the others, but they didn't say anything and just smiled at him. "Er… yes." He finally said.

"We'll see that."

The inn had transformed a small room in some kind of infirmary and Tsunade made a quick check-up, controlling his heart rate as well as the blood and chakra system. Even if she was somehow expecting it, she was a bit surprised to see that everything was normal.

"Indeed… you look fine. I still find that hard to believe, I thought that you would only wake up in two or three days." She said.

"I heal quite fast."

"I can see that. But it's not an excuse to risk your life like that." replied the Sannin. "If I had came a little bit later, you were doomed."

Naruto nodded, not really convinced, knowing pretty well that he wouldn't hesitate to do that again if Minato's life was threatened. Tsunade seemed to understand that too, she sighed but didn't say anything. "Ah kids…" To be honest, she was truly relieved that he had healed so fast. She wouldn't be able to bear the death of another young ninja she cared for. "It's not painful anymore?" She asked.

"Almost nothing."

"_And yet, I couldn't use pain killers… The pain should still be quite strong._" The medic-ninja thought. "You're very resilient/tough."

"I've trained for that." He simply answered. But when he saw the face of the Sannin, he thought that he shouldn't have said that. Frowning, her hands were clutched in a fist. Apparently, she was angry and he noticed that she reacted a little bit like his father.

"Yeah, Minato told me. It's the Council who trained you isn't it?" He only nodded, not wishing to worsen the situation.

On the other side, Tsunade was beginning to boil of fury. Since the death of her younger brother, and even more after the murder of her fiancé, she had despised those so-called leaders, those counsellors who didn't give a damn about the others and gave them suicidal missions like if it was nothing. And this time, it was even worse… They had stole him his life, even though he was just a child. At that time, she had already left the village and had only been informed of the attack and death of the fox demon, nothing more. Once again, they had plotted everything in secret.

"I hate them. They're just old hypocrites, twisted old farts…" She sighed of lassitude, releasing her fists. "And escaping is impossible. They're just as stubborn as my creditors…"

Those words reminded him something. "Then why didn't you take care of that by yourself?" He said, thinking more of the creditors than the counsellors.

Tsunade was a bit surprised and almost felt like laughing. He was asking her why she wasn't going back to the village to beat them up? "Eh? By myself… But that's not… how to say… not very…"

"Legal?" He answered for her. "It's not worse than running away so why not…"

The Sannin looked so astounded that Naruto briefly wondered why he had told her that. It was just an idea of little importance that had crossed his mind a while ago. But he couldn't help but speaking when she had talked about 'escaping'.

Tsunade was no more in the mood of laughing. Running away… was it really what she was doing? Sure, she fled before the creditors but she had always thought it was to respect Nawaki and Dan's memory that she had never listen to the Council. Perhaps the young ninja had once more revealed her a truth she had hidden from herself…

At this moment, they heard somebody knocking on the door and shortly after, they saw Shizune entering in the room.

"Are you finished?"

The Sannin pushed aside her thoughts. "Yes, it's over." She turned to Naruto. "Let's go, your father must be dying of worry by now."

They went back to their room and Tsunade slowed down a bit to let the boy go first. When he turned at a corner and disappear from their sight, she called her assistant.

"Say Shizune…" She began.

"Haï?"

"Can you picture me beating up the Council of Konoha?"

The young women seemed a bit surprised by that sudden question. "What? Why are you asking me this, Tsunade-sama?"

The blonde kunoichi was half expecting that kind of reaction and was going to say something like 'never mind' when she heard her voice again.

"I'm sure it is the first thing you would do if you became Hokage." Shizune finished with a grin.

This time Tsunade was the one surprised, it had become quite a habit lately. But a smile appeared on her lips too: he was right, she had never liked to run away.

"_What an amazing kid…_"

°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°

In the room, Minato was discussing with the Suna kunoichi when the three ninjas came back. He got back on his feet and walked up to Naruto.

"Tsunade? How is he?"

"Everything is fine." She answered.

Without saying a word but looking extremely relieved; he strokes the blond hairs of his son. A few seconds passed like that and the young Hokage finally forced himself to speak of something else. "You couldn't have come at a better time; I was telling Temari what happened during the Chûnin exam. I think we owe her explanations, and I would like to have some too…" He finished in a whisper. But Naruto had heard him and was wondering what he meant by that. He turned to the kunoichi and saw that she was sitting on the ground and was nervously tapping on her fan.

The other ninjas also sat back. "So if I understood well…" began Temari. "… You are the father of Naruto, the Yondaime, brought back to life during the attack of Orochimaru?"

"Yes, thanks to the Shinigami."

She seemed thoughtful. "But why did he come?"

Minato knew fairy well the answer but he wasn't the one to decide if he should tell it or not and he turned to Naruto. The boy simply nodded, there's wasn't any need to hide that from Temari.

"Unlike what is written in the history books of Konoha, I didn't die killing the fox demon, but sealing it… in Naruto." He revealed. "It's probably the meeting, normally impossible, between the bearer of the seal and the user of the Fûinjutsu that called the Shinigami."

For a few moments, the kunoichi couldn't find her words. Minato almost feared that she might react badly as she was only starring at Naruto but he was surprised too see a faint smile appear on her lips. "So you're also a Jinchûriki…"

"Also?" asked Naruto.

She nodded. "You know that the host of Shûkaku lives in our village, don't you?"

Minato had heard of that before. "Yes. I think that his name was Gaara, Sabaku no Gaara if I'm not mistaken."

"That's right. He's my brother."

They weren't expecting this. "That means you're the Kazekage's daughter?" Tsunade asked.

"The former Kazekage, but yes, I am."

Yondaime then seemed to recall that the Kage had been found dead in the desert of Suna, killed by Orochimaru. "I am sorry for his death." He added slowly.

The young girl only shrugged, not affected that much. She had never really liked her father who didn't hesitate to use his own children. She was more interested by another subject. "Apart from that… Why haven't we heard of your return in Suna?"

"The village was weakened by the invasion and we thought it was better to keep that secret or some of my old enemies could have taken advantage from it."

"But in the end, there were still some leeks since the Oto nins were aware of that." Kakashi objected.

"I know. And I'm still wondering where he got that information." Minato admit before turning again to the kunoichi of Kaze. "The other hidden villages should be informed soon but for now, I will ask you to keep that secret please."

Temari nodded, she could understand his reasons. "All right. But in exchange, if one day you have the chance, could you check the seal of Gaara? Since you are an expert in that domain."

"Sure, no problem." He replied before facing Naruto. "And about that… I would like to know where your second seal comes from."

Their gazes converged on the boy who frowned at this question. "What second seal?"

"What do you mean? what… The one you have right here." Minato said pointing to his heart.

The young ninja still didn't understand. "I have only one seal, and it's the one of Kyûbi."

That answer left him totally puzzled, he couldn't have dreamed of that. He turned to the others and saw that they also had the same questioning look. "Are you sure of that?"

"Yes." To confirm his words, he opened the top of his jacket and indeed, there wasn't a single mark on his skin.

"And yet, I'm sure that I saw it…" Yondaime whispered. "You don't have any memory about a second seal then?"

"No."

The young Hokage was beginning to find that worrying. It was the first time that he saw this kind of mark and it had seemed extremely complex, even for him. The complex seals were always the most powerful ones. And when they were powerful, the bearer of the seal was usually even more aware of it. This one was then special in more than one way.

If Naruto didn't remember it, it meant that the seal had been created without him knowing. Either when he was too small to have a clear memory, or when he was unconscious. And Minato couldn't break a seal if he didn't know its nature.

There wasn't much to do for now and he could only search for information when he would go back to Konoha. Well, if they went back one day. Their mission was still ongoing and didn't really seem to be coming to an end.

"I'll have to look that back in the village." He finally said out loud. Even if that subject concerned him, another requested his attention. "And speaking about the village, Tsunade…" He began with a tired voice.

"Oh no, you're not going to blab about that again Minato!" The Sannin protested.

"But…"

"I said no. It isn't the right time and place to discuss about that." She added. But unlike what Yondaime expected, she didn't seem really angry. "You're all exhausted, you should better rest a little for today."

Her gaze went over their faces, one by one. It was indeed true, the night fights as well as the following waiting had completely pumped out their energy and one day of relaxation would have been more than welcomed. Taking their silence for a yes, the Sannin walked to the door opening on the park.

"Since everybody agrees, let's go to the hot springs. It would be a shame to leave the place without visiting them." Saying that, she grabbed the arm of Temari, who tried to resist a bit but had no other choice than following her, and called her assistant without looking back. "You're coming Shizune?"

The brunette seemed to hesitate a little but finally decided to go after her. "Haï!"

A surprised silence followed their leaving, only broken by a deep sigh of resignation from Minato. "Oh please…"

On the other side, Kakashi had also stood up and still holding his book in front of him, he walked to the door. "She's right, Sensei." He said with a laughing voice. "You think well once you're relaxed."

"You deserter..." The young Hokage replied, although he was grinning. The masked ninja shrugged and went out.

Minato seemed to think about that for a moment. "Well, why not…"

But before leaving, he turned to his son and kneeled a bit to be at his level, he put his hands on his shoulders. "You're sure it doesn't hurt anymore?"

Naruto was going to answer when he crossed the cerulean gaze of Yondaime. The gaze which looked so much like the one he had seen in his mind. Was it really only a coincidence…? He highly doubted that, but for now, he didn't want to alarm his father who looked already worried enough. He would talk about it later.

"No, I'm okay." He finally said.

Minato hoped that it was true but as an answer, he just pulled him in a hug. "You really scared me back there…" He whispered. He was so glad to have him alive, after so many hours of dreadful waiting. He was trying to forget the time when he had almost died but he was sure that those images would still hunt him for a long time.

Naruto didn't really understood what he was feeling but at least, he saw that he had been right. Minato cared for him and would have never let him die. And that thought was more than enough.

"Sorry…"

Yondaime released the boy and looked at him, smiling. "Don't mind, you did save my life after all." He said while standing up. He ruffled the blond hairs of his son a last time. "Let's go with the others now."

°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°

As for the other, Tsunade had not gone very far on the way to the onsens. She had caught sight of some people who were playing cards in a room and could resist to the urge of joining them.

A few games –and as much of losses- later, she had left them and was now coming out of the changing room to enter in the hot springs. As expected, it was very crowded at this time of the day but the blonde kunoichi was still surprised to find it totally desert. "So, where did they all go?" She asked out loud.

"They were bored of waiting you for so long and they went out a few minutes ago." Minato answered, although she couldn't see him. "Where were you by the way?"

"Just playing poker with some clients of the inn."

"Then I don't really need to ask who lost?" A taunting voice said.

Entering in the water, Tsunade replied with an offended tone. "Yeah, you don't need."

She sat in the pool and rested her arms on the edges. "There's only you and Kakashi in there?"

"Yeah. Naruto was here before but it seemed that it was his first time in a hot spring and apparently, he found that a bit strange and went out."

The Sannin smiled, half-sad, half-chuckling. She was a bit sadden to notice that he didn't know much beside his work as a ninja but on the other hand, he still looked like a child who couldn't stand inaction.

She was observing her surroundings when she suddenly realized the state of the pathetic excuse of a fence which was separating the two pools. Made with bamboos, the fence was relatively short. If an adult had stood up beside it, his head would have easily risen above. As if it wasn't enough, the planks, or stalks surrounding the pool were bended in a few places and even had holes.

"Hey Minato." She called loudly. "If I ever saw you or the porn reader looking this way, even a Shinigami will not be able to put the pieces back together, I'm clear enough?"

"Crystal." Kakashi muttered on the other side. At this moment, a well-known orange book disappeared so quickly that its speed could have rival the Yellow Flash.

"Oh Tsunade don't mistake me." Minato protested. "I'm not like you-know-who…"

"Like master, like student." She declared, her voice was now the one to sound taunting. "And I didn't forget the time when YOU where caught near the onsens in Mizu and chased by almost all the women of the village."

He winced at the memory of that bad experience. "Ah… yeah… but err… it was a regrettable… misunderstanding…"

"Yeah, sure." She added, not really convinced.

Minato sight when he saw that Kakashi wasn't losing a single bit of their discussion. It seemed that this story would follow him until the end of his life… He didn't even try to defend his honesty, they wouldn't believe him and he relaxed while listening to the soothing sound of the waterfall.

But the peacefulness was broken by the sudden noise of a small explosion, startling the three ninjas.

"What was that?" Tsuande asked, a bit annoyed to be disturbed.

"I know this sound." Said Kakashi, glancing at his Sensei.

Minato rolled his eyes. "Me too…"

°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°

Naruto frowned and threw the remains of the rubber ball he had found in the lower branched of a tree? Missed it, again… The Rasengan he had barely managed to create an unperfected one during the fight and he still couldn't perfectly maintain the energy in the sphere.

"I thought I already heard that noise." A laughing voice said behind him. Turning around, he saw Temari who was coming this way. "Still training? You really don't know how to relax."

"I just found a ball over there…" He replied, vaguely showing the place.

"And you can't do it yet?"

"No. The rotation prevents me of adding chakra and if I still try to do it, the ball just blow up."

"I see…" While thinking, the young kunoichi sat on a bench besides her. She sat on the higher dossier whereas her feet were resting on the lower part. "But it's truly a difficult jutsu, are you really only an Academy student?" She asked, gazing at him. "I find that hard to believe."

He seemed to hesitate a bit but was it really useful to hide her that information now that she knew most of their secrets… He also sat on the ground, back to a tree and legs crossed.

"Officially, yes."

That was an answer by itself. "And unofficially?"

"Former Anbu." He revealed.

Temari was truly surprised by that. "Really?" He nodded. "Now I understand why you're so strong." She rested her hands on the bench, besides her and lifted the head to the sky. "That's funny… In my village, they also thought of putting my brother in that squad." She finally confessed.

Those words reminded him something. "When you told me that I looked like somebody you knew, you were talking of your brother?"

"Yeah." She simply answered.

For a few moments, they didn't say anything and just relaxed in the park of the inn. Then Temari seemed to remember something and turned to him. "Hey you know what; they say that there will be a festival tonight in Narita."

He glanced at her with a questioning look. "I heard people talking about that inside." She added. "They told me that we could see the fireworks from here." She only sighed, when was the last time she saw some of them…

"Fireworks? What's that?" He asked her.

"Eh? You don't know?" She looked a bit unbelieving, finding that quite strange. But instead of interrogating him, she tried to explain him, using her hands to mimic the rockets exploding in the sky.

°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°

In the hot springs, Tsunade was wondering why Minato and Kakashi had seemed so bored when they heard that sound.

The noise had came from somewhere behind her and she only had to turn round and look through a hole in the bamboo to see outside. "There's Naruto, it's him who did that?"

"Yeah." Minato answered. "I began to teach him the Rasengan. He managed to master the two first steps in less than ten minutes." He heard a surprised gasp on the other side. "And it's been two or three days that he's stuck on the third."

The Sannin still found that time more than honourable and smiled when she thought at the longs weeks her stupid team mat had spent to learn the jutsu of his student. Her eyes were attracted by other movements outside and her grin winded. "Your son already found himself a girlfriend." She chuckled.

A bit curious, Yondaime also tried to look outside and laughed when he saw the picture of the two teens. After a moment, he saw Temari making large gestures while Naruto seemed to be listening very attentively. He would have loved to know what they were talking about.

"Your kid is really amazing, Minato." He heard, and he had the feeling that wasn't only speaking of what they were seeing now.

"What do you mean?"

"Sometimes, he looks so indifferent to the world that it frightens me but despite that… he's still able to change people somehow." She said slowly. "He allowed me to be in peace with my old memories and above all…"

Minato wasn't expecting her to reveal this. Besides him, Kakashi who had taken back his book, looked away for a while and the two ninjas attentively listen to her next words. "… He managed to give me enough courage to go back to the village..."

The young Hokage stayed gaping. "You mean that…"

"That Godaime will come back with you in Konoha." She finished with a joyful voice.

If there was one person glad to hear that, it was Yondaime. "That's some great news…" He was now facing the fence. "Mind to tell me when you decided that?"

"Hm? Just after finishing the check-up of Naruto." She said with an innocent smile. "A few hours ago."

The former Hokage didn't knew if he had to be happy or exasperated. Both maybe. "You could have told me that sooner. Did you really have to keep me stressed all this time?"

That made Tsunade chuckle and she turned in their direction. "But it wouldn't… MINATO! I TOLD YOU NOT TO LOOK THIS WAY!!"

Yondaime had completely forgotten that and realized that from the place where he was standing, he had a perfect view on the other pool through the broken fence. Kakashi was searching for any possible way out when they saw the furious Sannin come in.

"Wa…Wait Tsunade!" tried Yondaime, moving backward. "I didn't… err... it was a…"

"A misunderstanding you said?!!" She shouted before crossing the fence, destroying it for good.

°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°

In the park, Temari was in the middle of her explanation when they heard some kind of yell coming from the hot springs.

"What was that?" The kunoichi said.

"It sounded like the voice of Tsunade." Naruto answered.

A few seconds later, they saw an enormous spray of water splashing from behind the bamboo fence, quickly followed by other strangled screams.

The same thought crossed their minds. "_Just what are they doing..._?"

°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°

A few hours later, the group gathered again for dinner. Shizune, Temari and Naruto had arrived first and very soon joined by Tsunade who, curiously, was showing a huge satisfied smile. Shizune thought it was the same she had let appear when she beat the shit out of Jiraiya the day he had dared made his 'research' on her.

Her doubts were confirmed when she saw two bruised ninjas enter in the room. On the other side, Naruto and Temari were a bit surprised to see in which state Minato and Kakashi had came back from the onsens. The young boy could have sworn he heard them mutter something like. "You calla that a medic-nin…" and "Why me too…"

What they didn't was that the Sannin had controlled herself because she didn't wanted to wait for two wounded ninjas before going back to Konoha.

After the dinner, Shizune and Temari had went to ask information about the festival, leaving behind them a silent ninja, two usually silent shinobis and one very dangerous kunoichi.

Said kunoichi had then suddenly felt the urge to play cards and luckily, they were just enough for…

"You want to do what?" asked Minato.

"A poker, have a problem with that?" She replied while making her knuckles crack.

Naruto didn't really understand why the two ninjas instantaneously paled, shaking the head. "No, no, not at all." Yondaime quickly answered. He had seen many frightening things during his life but he had absolutely no desire to face an angry Tsunade once more.

"Good." The Sannin said, clapping her hands. She went to take a deck of cards while the three shinobis were taking place around a small table. "Time to take my revenge…" She whispered, sitting on a cushion to mix the deck. "Here, your cards gaki. Don't worry, I'll teach you the rules before beginning."

"I know them." Replied Naruto, surprising the three other players.

Tsunade seemed pleased to hear that. "You know how to play?"

"I didn't thought you did." Kakashi added.

"When did you learn?" A slightly suspicious Minato asked. A simple game of cards, it wasn't that important but still… who would teach poker to an eleven years old kid?

"Three days ago, in Haneda." He simply said.

"Haneda?" Yondaime frowned. "The previous town? But who did you played with?"

"Temari?" The kunoichi suggested in a playful voice. The two men couldn't help but grin at this comment, the poor Naruto looked so surprised.

"_Temari..?_" The young boy thought, a little lost. He didn't saw what she had to do with that. "Er no… When I found the gambling house where Tsunade went before leaving, the owner told me that if I won, he would give information."

"So you won?" Minato questioned.

"I don't know, he made me change the game after a while."

He heard a surprised gasp and turning the head, he saw that the Sannin was gazing at him with wide saucer eyes. "He wanted to change..?" She repeated, unbelieving. "_I can't believe it… Even if he beat me hollow, he withdrew against the gaki??_"

She shook the head and held more tightly her cards. Losing again was totally out of question. And certainly not with the two perverts in front of her.

"Let's begin."

°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°

No far from there, Shizune and Temari were slowly coming back to their room, crossing though the park. They had asked where the firework would take place and the evening was so nice that they decided to walk a little more. They had been talking for a while now and had learnt several things about each other.

"So, how is it to be the elder?" Shizune asked when she discovered that Temari had two brothers. As a single child, she was a bit curious. (5)

The blond kunoichi seemed thoughtful. "Hm… It's not bad. You're supposed to be more... responsible, but besides, you have a lot more of authority." She told her, grinning. Authority… A brother was really the best victim in the world. "They always listen to me.. well, one of them at least." She sighed.

Shizune felt that the subject was serious and was going to talk about something else when the young girl continued. "Gaara is a bit more… difficult…" She said, failing to find another word. "When I saw Naruto, I didn't think that he could be like him, and yet…"

The brown haired kunoichi smiled. "So Naruto-kun is like a brother to you?" She had noticed that the two ninjas were getting along pretty well.

The question surprised Temari but she nodded. "Yeah, a brother… and a friend." She answered. The young girl had only few friends in her village but strangely, she felt close enough to her team mate to call him like that.

The two kunoichi were almost arrived in the room. Its sliding door was half opened, leaving a ray of light crossing through the dark night. But as they were coming near, they were startled by a loud yell.

"Argh!! I've had enough!"

Shizune and Temari then saw a flight of cards crossing the front step, just in front of them. Slightly surprised, they looked at each other before taking a peek trough the door. In the room, they saw the four ninjas sitting on the floor, Naruto facing Tsunade, Minato and Kakashi on the two other places.

The Sannin was turning back to them and taken grab her head with one hand, the other pointing to Naruto. The young boy was holding his cards just in front of his face so they could only see two very concentrated eyes. Besides, Minato and on a lesser level Kakashi, were snickering behind their cards. Payback, at last.

"Only straight flush!! That's impossible, I'm sure you cheated!"

Naruto didn't even answer. He just put his cards on the table, showing his last hand. Tsunade's gaze went over the game, her expression becoming more and more disbelieving. "_Ten… Jack… Queen… King… Ace… Oh great, royal flush..._" She thought, wiping her face with her hand.

"Okay, I give up." She finally admitted.

Yondaime and Kakashi sweat dropped, the game had ended as soon as she had thrown the cards by the door. And speaking of the door, Temari and Shizune had just come in, diverting the Sannin's attention.

"Don't be a poor loser, Tsunade-sama." Her assistant said.

"What makes you think I am?" The blond kunoichi muttered.

Shizune held back a grin. She hadn't seen her Sensei so relaxed and happy for a long time. Even if she wanted to appear grumbling, her eyes were shining with joy, thanks to Naruto.

"The fireworks are starting soon." Temari informed them. "They told us we could see it well from up there."

"Let's go then." Minato said, standing back.

A few minutes later, they arrived in the higher floors. While Naruto, Temari and Tsunade sat on the roof, the others just stayed on the balcony. They didn't waited long to see the first fireworks enlightening the black sky with colourful gleams.

"So, how is it?" The Suna kunoichi asked Naruto.

He wasn't really sure. "Hm… but what is it for?"

The young girl seemed a bit surprised at first, that question was strange but funny also. "Nothing. Just to look nice."

He didn't say anything but lift again his eyes toward the spray of light. "_To look nice…_" He repeated for himself. Those fireworks were indeed quite beautiful, and their fitted their name, Hanabi (6) … The mix of colours was sparkling as the rockets exploded in a sound of thunder and their brightness was so intense that it even eclipsed the stars.

°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°

The following day, the six ninjas left the inn and headed toward Konoha. Well, 'left' would be quite an understatement. In fact, they run away after paying the bill when the owner discovered the state of the onsen's pools. And the fence, more particularly. Tsunade had given additional money but didn't want to hear complains for hours and had left first.

For now, they were walking parallel to the Suna frontier, moving under a sun covered by thin with clouds. After a few hours, the young kunoichi stopped them. "It's an outpost of Kaze over there." Temari said, pointing to a tower at the edge of the desert. "From here, there's a watched road straight to Suna. I'll follow it."

Minato nodded. "Very well." He said, shaking her hand. "Thanks for guiding us."

"You're welcome. And don't worry; I will not say a word about what you told me."

"For that, I trust you."

Tsunade, Shizune and Kakashi also said her goodbye. "Tell your Council that I'll wait for them in Konoha to sign an alliance." The Sannin requested, already in the role of Godaime. The young girl seemed glad to hear those words. "I will not forget."

Then she turned to her last team mate. "See you Naruto. We'll probably meet again at the next Chûnin exam."

"Yes-"

"Well, only if you manage to become Genin." She added, on a joking tone.

If the young ninja wasn't turning back to the group of adult who had moved a bit away, they might have seen the slight smile which appeared on his face at this moment. As well as the violet flash that enlightened his eyes.

"I'll do my best then…"

The kunoichi also grinned and after waving them a last time, she went back in the land of Kaze. These few days had been full of action and for once, she would have something interesting to tell to her brother.

°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°

Two days later, the small group finally arrived in sight of the huge gates of their village. Too see again Konoha left them different feelings. Minato couldn't wait to come back, now he could finally begin his research on that disturbing seal. And this time, he would be helped by Sandaime and Godaime.

Shizune seemed also glad to be back in her village after so many years of years of travelling in all the countries.

Kakashi… well, as usual. It didn't affect him much.

For Tsunade, on the other hand, it was different. A few days ago, she wouldn't have ever thought of going back here on her free will. And now, not only did she come back, but she was going to be Hokage. The Sannin clenched her fist, surely the job wouldn't be so easy but she knew a certain Council that would help her to let off steam.

Naruto was also rather pleased to come back in the village. Since the day they had left the Suna frontier, the travel had been quite tiring. All the way long, Minato and Tsunade hadn't stopped to make allusions to him and Temari and he couldn't understand why they found that so funny.

The young boy was walking slightly behind them and suddenly he stopped, scanning the surrounding forest. He thought he had sensed a presence not far from them but it disappeared immediately as soon as he turned the head.

"Naruto?" Yondaime called.

It was maybe an animal after all. "I'm coming." He answered before following them. When he joined them, the ninjas walked trough the great door of Konoha-Gakure.

The afternoon was peaceful and sunny the day Godaime came back in her village.

TBC…

* * *

(1) Kodachi: short Japanese sword  
(2) Fûinjutsu: seal techniques  
(3) Fûrin: a little bell the Japanese tie above the window or the door and it chime with the wind. Fû=wind  
(4) Sensei: means teacher but can also be used for doctors  
(5) If my memory's good, the manga doesn't say anything about this. Plus, she looks like the only daughter type, for me.  
(6) Hanabi: fireworks. Literally, it means 'Fire Flower'.

hope you liked it,  
don't hesitate to review, the next chap could only come sooner^^

See ya!


	8. Chap 7: Plans, Parents and Problems

* * *

Guess who's back??  
Finally, chapter 7 is out!

And for that you can also thank _**Shinichi06**_, I always feel full of inspiration and energy to write after reading the new reviews, so when I saw the last ones, I quickly open back my translated story… just to see that I had already finished this chap a while ago, ha ha ha… Please don't kill me!!

Anyway, thanks to everybody else who reviewed!

_**sweetXsunshine**_: Akatsuki and Gaara are not coming right now but don't worry, they'll have a huge part in this story!

_**Elitewarr**_: You sensed well^^

I really tried to do a better translation this time and I hoped you'll like it,  
Enjoy!

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto, Masashi Kishimoto does.

* * *

_Forgotten Prisoner_

_Chapter 7: Plans, Parents and Problems_

°-°-°-°-° Two months later °-°-°-°-°

The afternoon was as peaceful and sunny as the day Tsunade came back in Konoha. The wind was as gentle and nature as radiant. And yet today, Godaime-sama wasn't really planning to listen the birds sing.

Sitting behind her desk, and turning back to the windows opened on the village, the Sannin was reading her umpteenth report of the day. Once the file was read and signed, she took another one, sighing deeply. Honestly, was it really useful to know that the cat of the Daimyô's wife had been found alive for the 58th time? Or that the fishes in the fountain of Konoha's park had been found dead for the 35th time?

Damn cat… and damn fishes…

She put the paper down again, rolling her eyes. There should be somebody to take care of this kind of details. Couldn't anyone buy a titanium leash for the cat, a bodyguard for the fishes and leave the Hokage to deal with more important matter?!

The job wasn't exactly as exciting as it seemed at first.

At this moment, Tsunade heard somebody knocking at the door. "Come in." She said out loud. She hoped that it wasn't a new pile of paperwork and feared the worst when she saw the face of assistant.

"What kind of… good news… are you bringing me today?"

The brunette closed the door before turning to her Sensei. "Don't worry, this time I'm only bringing you some tea." She answered while putting down a tray on the corner of her desk. Holding the teapot in one hand, she served the Hokage who seemed relieved by the perspective of a break.

Tsunade drank a few sips of tea before facing again her assistant. "Why on earth did I ever decide to become Hokage?" She asked in a bored tone.

Shizune quickly glanced at the opened files spread on the desk and began to laugh. "Perhaps because you love animals!"

Tsunade also chuckled at the joke. "Good answer." She replied.

While drinking her tea, the Sannin stood up and went near the window. Being Hokage had at least one advantage… She had always a beautiful view on the village.

"I felt I've been in that chair for years."

"It has only been two months." Shizune corrected.

"Two months?" Tsunade repeated. "That day already seems so far…"

°-°-°-°-° Flashback °-°-°-°-°

Konoha was one of the most southern capitals among the great Elemental Countries, just after the main town of Mizu. For an end of February, the temperatures were still mild and that came just at the right time because today, villagers and shinobi wouldn't really be staying inside.

The announcement of Sandaime's retirement had been a bit surprising at first but generally, people understood him and were even somehow eager to hear the declaration of their new Hokage when she would take office. Now, the whole population was gathered in front of the Tower and while waiting for Godaime's arrival, conversations were flying around. The less informed learned that it was the kunoichi of the Sannin whereas the others were already comparing her to her predecessors.

On the other side of the walls, in the building, Tsunade wasn't comparing anything but was also slowly getting impatient. She was still in the Hokage's office with Sandaime, Yondaime, Naruto and the counsellor Homura.

Arms crossed on her chest, she was glaring at Sarutobi who was rummaging in his cupboards as her irritation went increasing. "You didn't find your costume yet?" She asked, frowning.

The old Hokage was turning back and still searching. "I prefer to call that an official dress, if you have no objection."

"Dress, costume, disguise, it's the same thing." She shrugged. "It looks more like pyjamas anyway."

Minato chuckled at those words. To be honest, he had thought exactly like her about that long dress, all white and red, and had always been a bit reluctant to wear it in front of everybody. That was why he had made this coat with 'Yondaime Hokage' written in the back. Definitely cooler than the pyjamas.

"I am appalled by this vision you have of the dress, Tsunade." Sandaime said with a voice falsely indignant. "You'll see that it is very comfortable."

"You'll have to find it first." The Sannin retorted.

On the other side, Homura was anxiously watching the spinning hands of the clock, hoping that it wouldn't be too long. They were already late on the normal schedule.

"I will ask them to wait a little more." He finally said before walking toward the door, totally ignored. Hand on the door handle; he looked at Sandaime who was searching for his things in slow motion. "You could at least pretend to be in a hurry." He sighed while leaving.

Godaime hadn't even listened him. Tapping her feet on the wooden floor, she was losing her patience. "You're always wearing that, how could you lost it?"

"Hazards of dry-cleaning." He answered in a teasing voice.

Tsunade felt like hitting her head on the desk, wondering if her former sensei was already senile.

Yondaime was watching that little scene with a strong feeling of deja vu. Sarutobi had fooled him with the same trick of the lost official dress when he had been named Hokage. A sort of hazing and a way to relax a bit the future Hokage. In fact, Sandaime had offered him to do it this time but he had felt the consequences of Tsunade's wrath and that idea had effectively dissuade him.

"Forget it, I'm going now!" The kunoichi suddenly said.

Minato caught her just in time, she was already walking toward the door. "Nooo, wait. That dress is really important; we all wore it at least for the ceremony. You can't decently become Hokage without taking it!"

Tsunade deeply sighed; she looked exasperated but seemed to resign herself to wait. "Oh all right... But hurry up!" She was a bit apprehending the time when she would have to present herself in front of the whole village. More than the speech she had to do, it was the symbol that represented this moment that made her slightly nervous. From that instant, she would definitively become Godaime. For the village, and for the rest of the world.

"I'm doing what I can." The Sannin heard. She had never held back a punch that much.

Leaning against a wall, Naruto was curiously watching them. From his place, he had a perfect view on a piece of cloth coming out from under the Hokage's desk. What he didn't really see was why the three Hokage was pretending to search for it. Minato had asked him to not keep the secret and he was now seeing him with a huge smile. Sandaime only hide his grin because he was turning back and although Tsunade seemed angry, her caramel eyes were betraying her.

Sincerely, he found a bit difficult to understand what was so funny. Besides it was the first time he saw grown-up people acting this way. And to say the truth, it was more pleasant than being among strict adults with severe faces.

He heard a shout of triumph from Sandaime.

"Aha!"

"You found it?" Tsunade asked while trying to look over his shoulder.

"Yes." He said, only giving her a red and white hat. "The rest shouldn't be very far."

Sandaime had turned round again to search when he heard a door violently slammed. Looking behind, he saw only two blond shinobi in the room.

"She snapped." Minato just commented.

Sandaime couldn't help but laugh. "I was already surprised that she could bear it for so long. Let's follow her now."

"You're leaving the rest?" Naruto asked.

"Yeah, it doesn't really matter. Your father is the one to talk; he didn't wear it either for the ceremony."

The young boy glanced at Minato who had changed back into Arashi. "Hey, I didn't want to go out in pyjamas for my first day as Yondaime."

Sarutobi shrugged and, followed the two shinobi in the stairs leading to the wide terrace of the Hokage Tower.

Up there, they joined the kunoichi of the Sannin. She was still out of view from the villagers and was talking with Homura. She turned to face them at their arrival.

"You two." She said, pointing to her predecessor. "Keep in mind that I will remember that little prank."

The two shinobis tried to smile but they seemed quite tensed. "Aren't you forgetting somebody?" Arashi added.

"But you didn't know about this, did you Naruto?" Tsunade asked turning to the young boy.

"No." He answered, totally impassive. Even if he knew, there was no need to tell her. Especially her.

Sarutobi and Minato glanced at him, half-blaming and half-laughing but didn't say anything. "See." The kunoichi replied.

Yondaime sighed but chose to end that topic. Besides, the Sannin had already turned to face the outer railing.

"Well Godaime, ready to face the village?" He asked her.

"No." She placed the hat on her head. "Ready to rule Konoha." Saying that, Tsunade walked to the end of the terrace.

When the new Hokage came in sight of the population, acclamations and joyful shouts erupted from all sides. Since that moment, the Sannin didn't felt nervous anymore. She was going to be one of the five Kages who ruled the hidden villages. She was going to govern this village and she would protect it and its inhabitants with her life.

"If I am standing in standing in front of you all today, as the new leader of Konoha, it is to assure you with a promise. You have lived difficult times and their consequences are still here but it will not last for long. The village has been destroyed but it can be rebuilt. Trust has been shattered but an alliance can be reformed. Because the will of Fire of Konoha will not disappear as long as its people keep hope and determination. It will not be done in one day, I am well aware of that. The way to prosperity will be long and difficult and will surely ask significant efforts. But this is why, from today, I will devote myself to defend the Leaf village. It is not Senju Tsunade who give you that promise, but Godaime Hokage."

That speech was not exactly the one she had prepared with the Council members. And whereas a desperate Homura was pulling his hair out of his head, applause and cries of joy burst out like thunder below the Hokage Tower.

°-°-°-°-° End Flashback °-°-°-°-°

Tsunade finished her tea, still thinking with feeling to that memory, which was tainted with a slight disappointment. She was glad that the villagers had welcomed her so easily but she would have like them to know who deserved their congratulations for her return.

She had not mentioned Minato and Naruto in her speech. For the first one, it was because he had not announced his return yet. And for the second, because he didn't want it. The Sannin regretted a bit that the blond ninja stayed in the shadows this way, especially after all he had done for her and the village. Tsunade had given in since it was his wish but she had promised herself to search for his reason.

And she didn't have to search far...

During these two last months, she had quickly realized that the former Anbu wasn't really liked by the other shinobi and let-alone by the civilians. They seemed to bear a grudge against him for being the container of the monster who had devastated Konoha. That was stupid of course and she never missed a chance to repeat that to her subordinates when they showed a little bit too blatantly their disdain for the young ninja.

But she couldn't really do more. She couldn't changer their feelings toward him as well as he had changed hers. At least, not as long as he was willing to keep his feats secrets.

Tsunade slowly put down her cup, she hoped that time would finally ease those tensions.

A few minutes later, Godaime left her office and walked toward the stairs leading to the lower floors of the Hokage Tower. She had received a message from her secretary and had to inform somebody. She could have sent Shizune for that but she also wanted to speak with him.

Arrived at the library floor, she knocked on the door.

"Arashi? It's me, Tsunade." She called.

"Yeah come in." A voice answered from inside.

The Sannin pushed the door and entered in a room full of shelves which were filled with various books and scrolls. Yondaime was sitting behind a desk and only a blond mop was visible behind a pile of papers. She even had to step over a few of them to reach his table.

"What a mess."

"Sorry, I didn't have the energy to clean everything." Minato confessed with a tired voice.

She waved her hand. "Don't worry about that." She said while sitting on the corner of the desk. "I've got a message for you but first, tell me if you found something new."

The former Hokage sighed and put down the book he was holding. "Nothing." He leaned against the back of his chair, closing his eyes. "I consulted all the thesis and books about seals and imprisoning techniques but I didn't found anything that looked like the seal of Naruto." He smiled sadly. "And I'm supposed to be an expert in Fûinjutsu..."

Tsunade seemed pained to see her friend so demoralized. "You shouldn't give up hope because of that, Minato. We always come across unknown things and it's perfectly normal. All we can do is learn and continue to search."

Minato opened his eyes and his cerulean gaze turned to the Sannin. He seemed slightly more determined than a few seconds ago. "Yeah, you're right." He admitted. "Well, back to the starting point."

Tsunade smiled, that was the resolute shinobi she knew. "Did you saw the seal again?" She asked him.

"No, but I remember its general form." He replied before handing her a sketch he had drawn earlier.

The kunoichi took the paper and immediately recognized the seal she had seen in the forest, with a triangle surrounded with several different circles and symbols.

"It's an odd-numbered seal." Yondaime explained. "Third rank. According to the theory, it is classified among the weakest seals but judging by the important number of ellipsis, I would say that a great quantity of chakra has been used. And that makes it much more dangerous."

Looking closely, Tsunade noticed that the circles were not perfectly round and that indeed, they were ellipses. "And the two seals don't interact?"

"Not as much as if they had different natures. The seal of Kyûbi is also odd and the interaction should be minor. But that's maybe what changed the colour of his eyes."

The Sannin nodded, thoughtful. "Do you think it could explain why they were violet last time? And the voice he heard?"

Minato crossed his arms. "To tell the truth, I don't know. But I suppose that Naruto had heard the Kyûbi. It would mean that the seal I created is weakening and that the interaction stronger than what I thought." He shook the head. "But it should be impossible."

"That your seal weakens?"

"No, impossible that they interacted more. They have the same nature but different forms: mine holds back a demon, it is adapted to contain a Bijuu's chakra. And the other..." Minato sighed again. "That's the problem. I don't know what's the purpose of this seal."

Tsunade would have also liked to know that, although she had some ideas. "Don't you think... it could involve.. his feelings?" She asked, unsure.

The former Hokage looked down, shaking his head. "I already considered that... But as I said, I didn't find anything."

A pregnant silence took place between the two shinobis. A few minutes later, Minato finally remembered something.

"You said you had a message for me?"

"Oh yeah, I almost forgot." The Sannin recalled. "You're called at the Academy, now."

"Why?"

"I think that Sarutobi wants to speak with you about your son's class or something like that. But he didn't give more details."

"Well, I'll go now." Minato almost fell on a pile of book when he stood up. He transformed into Arashi and he was going to leave when he turned to the kunoichi. "I'll come back later to clean."

Tsunade shrugged. "No, no, just leave it. I'll find somebody to take care of that."

He flashed her a delighted grin, rather pleased to get away from that. "Okay, thanks."

Once he was gone, Godaime stayed in the room a little bit more, gazing at the mess and asking herself who would inherit that chore. "_Why not that newbie, the one who's so annoying..._" She thought while leaving the library.

°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°

On the other side of the village, far from the Hokage Tower -and from Godaime's little personal revenges-, future ninjas were training outside the Academy.

Naruto and the other students were in Ninjustu class and after the theory, they were beginning to practice. The children were a bit scattered on the training ground, a few were trying the technique on their own and the Sensei called them one by one to test them. Now, it was Sakura's turn.

On the other side, Naruto was not revising at all. In fact, he was barely concentrated on that boring class.

Although he was a former Anbu, they were a few classes that didn't bore him, like the lessons on Konoha's history which talked about the previous Hokage. It was a domain the Council had more or less neglected when he was following their training and Iruka managed to make it relatively interesting.

However, a class about the basic technique Kawarimi was not so new for him and besides; it was given by a kunoichi who hated him.

The young ninja was simply gazing at the forest and everything else when his attention was caught by a quick movement in front of the Academy. Looking closely, he realized that it was a shinobi who had jumped from the roof to land in front of one of the building's door and he immediately recognized. It was Mizuki, but his presence here would have been less surprising if he had still been a teacher. Indeed, the Chûnin had resigned shortly after the invasion and following to his altercation with Yondaime.

And yet, he saw that Mizuki was carrying a few scrolls, he had probably some kind of work to do in the school. The ninja soon disappeared from his sight and Naruto didn't wonder about his appearance anymore.

But as he was going to turn the head, his attention was draw by another roof jumping shinobi. The place was becoming quite crowded...

The brown haired ninja went through the main entrance and was now turning his back to him but he had enough time to see his face and that surprised him more than the Chûnin's passing. It was Minato, or rather Arashi. Naruto was wondering what he was doing here since he had told him he would work at the Tower all day.

A voice pulled him out of his thoughts. "Uzumaki!"

The next second, he heard the sound of flying kunaïs and shurikens but he didn't even have the time to turn the head. The metallic weapons violently hit him. They deeply cut his skin and soaked his clothes in blood under the horrified exclamations of the other students.

They saw Naruto fall his body wounded by shurikens and kunaïs. But just when he was going to hit the ground, he disappeared. Blowing up in a cloud of smoke. Astonished, the students saw that in place he was standing a second ago, was a wooden log, riddled with steel.

"Where did he go?" Chôji finally said.

They were starting to look around them when they heard Akamaru barked. "Up there!" Kiba shouted out, pointing to a tree. Then they saw the blond ninja, one hand in his pocket, jump off his branch and land not far from their Sensei.

They were waiting for her to say something; a few of them had been a bit surprised, and even shocked by that sudden and violent attack. The kunoichi seemed to realize that they were quite disconcerted and gratified Naruto with a big smile, looking very natural. "Very good. I knew you could do it." She congratulated him.

The young ninja crossed her glare and curiously, her brown irises reminded him a bit the ones of Tsunade. But unlike the Sannin's eyes, those were filled with hatred. Blood red orbs gazed at her for an instant then he turned away, not saying a word as she called somebody else.

Naruto walked a bit away from the group of student. The kunoichi was an excellent Jounin and he had been thinking so deeply that she had truly taken him by surprise. If that had been another student, she could have wounded him seriously. But on second thought, she wouldn't have done it if it had not been him.

He should have paid more attention. Many things had changed since Minato's return but when he was not here, they often reverted to their original state. He _would_ have to pay more attention. A former Anbu couldn't get caught this way.

He took out his hand from his pocket to examine it. It was marked with along scratch as a few droplets of blood ran on his fingers. He was holding a shuriken which one of its points was tainted in red. For nothing in the world would he give her the pleasure to see that she had hit him. Noticing that she looked at his side, he quickly put the shuriken away.

The rest of the class went on normally but this time, Naruto never let his attention drift completely away from the current lesson. He was almost sure that she wouldn't try this kind of attack again but the first had made him a bit suspicious and he always kept an eye on her. Just in case.

°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°

On the other side of the Academy's walls, Arashi had just met with Sarutobi who was discussing with Iruka, all three knowing nothing of the incident that was happening right now. Minato closed the door and changed back to his original form.

"Yondaime-sama." Iruka greeted, bowing the head.

The blond ninja smiled in front of this mark of respect. "I'm not Hokage anymore. Minato will be enough."

The Chûnin seemed embarrassed by that request. "But... you are..."

"Forget it, Minato." The old man advised, his pipe in one hand. "After all these years, I can't even have them calling me by name... They will get used to it one day." He finished, shrugging.

"Sandaime-sama! You are not just some random people!" Iruka protested.

"Of course I am." Sarutobi replied. "Well, let's talk about something else than the inaptitude of our shinobi to consider us like mere mortals... Minato, do you remember the Kumo ninjas' intrusion two months ago?"

Sandaime was referring to an incident that had occurred when they were gone, searching for their future Godaime. The Kumo nins, with a shinobi of Oto, had managed to get into the village and their targets had been the mansions of the Uchiha and Hyûga clans. They had tried to kidnap their heirs, meaning Uchiha Sasuke and Hyûga Hinata. Luckily, the families were watchful and with the help of the Anbu, the intruders had been caught. The downside was that they had all been either eliminated or had killed themselves and Ibiki hadn't got anybody to question.

Minato had also learned that it wasn't the first time the Hyûga clan was threatened. But Mikoto, Sasuke's mother, had been deeply shaken by that kidnapping attempt, although she had killed many ninjas herself.

Konoha had opened long negotiations with Kumo but the presence of an Oto nin also bothered them.

"I read several reports on that." Minato answered.

"Good. The Genin exam is near and Iruka has received a request from Uchiha Mikoto concerning the team arrangement."

"Shouldn't we wait for the children to pass the exam before speaking about the teams?" Yondaime said.

"Normally yes, we would do so." Iruka replied. "But concerning Sasuke and Hinata, their results are excellent and there are practically no doubts about their success. Deciding that now or after the exam will not change much. After the last events, Mikoto-san asked me to put the strongest ninjas with her son if he succeeded. That not what we usually do but considering the circumstances, it is understandable. And I have the feeling that she was alluding to Naruto."

"That's why I would like to have your opinion Minato." Sarutobi concluded.

Yondaime only thought for a few seconds. "I think it would be a very good idea, Naruto will perfectly able to provide a regular protection. For one person at least, because it would be more difficult for two. Are you intending to put Hinata in the same team?"

"No, her family didn't ask for that and I think she is less threatened." Iruka explained.

"I agree with that." Sandaime added. "There were clearly not as much ninjas attacking the Hyûga residence than at the Uchiha's and the Oto nin was not among them."

"It could be a trap." Minato objected. "Maybe they want us to protect the wrong target."

"I thought about this. But knowing Kumo, they wouldn't have sent so many ninjas if they didn't really wanted to kidnap the Uchiha heir. Moreover, the Hyûga family has more people and is able to protect its children."

"We are not going to put weak ninjas with Hinata. I have in mind two students who, if they succeed, could from a good team specialized in recognition and detection. Not to forget that Hinata possess the Byakugan." Iruka added.

Minato nodded. "Have you already decided who will be with Naruto and Sasuke?" He asked.

"No, not yet." The Chûnin replied. "Probably, one of the best kunoichi who will pass."

"Very well."

The three shinobis discussed for the ten next minutes and their reunion was coming to its end when the bell of the Academy rang.

"I have to leave you now; I must speak with the other teachers." Iruka told them, while standing up. "And I have to inform Mikoto-san."

"I can take care of that." Yondaime offered. "My house is not very far from the Uchiha residence."

Iruka gladly accepted and bowed the head one last time before going out. "Thank you very much, Yon... Minato-sama, Sarutobi-sama."

The blond shinobi grinned at this change but Sandaime really seemed to exult. "At last! It's about time!" He exclaimed. "But you still have to forget the -sama." He warned him.

Iruka nodded, smiling and went out in the Academy's corridors.

The two shinobis also walked toward the door. "When do you plan to meet Mikoto?" Sarutobi asked.

"I can go now, with Naruto." Yondaime answered, changing back to Arashi's appearance.

"All right, but I don't think it would be useful to inform Sasuke. According to what Iruka told me, there's already enough rivalry between them. Well, one-sided rivalry to be exact. He might not like the idea of being protected by another member of his team."

"I'll be careful." Minato assured before going his way.

The shinobi went out of the building through the back door and tried to search the blond head of his son among the children coming out of the Academy. After a few seconds, he spotted him but he had already passed the gates. Minato went round the groups of students and also went out n the street. The ninja was walking besides a brown haired boy who was dragging his feet. "...not bad... Kawarimi..."

As their discussion wasn't very animated, he called him. "Naruto!"

The young boy turned round but didn't seem really surprised to see him. "Ah, you were still here?" He asked.

"Still?" Minato repeated, a bit stunned.

"I saw you entering the Academy a while ago."

That answer made Yondaime chuckle. "Really, nothing can escape from your eyes!"

Naruto felt the shuriken's weigh in his pocket. "Almost nothing..." He whispered too low for them to hear it.

"He's your father?" The boy asked.

The two ninjas glanced at each other. They had never introduced themselves this way to somebody who didn't know their secret so they had never been asked that question.

"... Yes..." They replied without thinking.

The young boy's gaze went over their face for a few instants. "You don't really look much alike." he finally said after a yawn.

Minato found that comment quite funny, usually they were always told the contrary. But of course, he couldn't be aware of the Henge. He rested a hand on Naruto's shoulder. "Let's just say that he takes more from his mother. But I'm really his father, Uzumaki Arashi."

Naruto briefly glanced at him. _Uzumaki Arashi...?_ Minato himself didn't exactly know why he had said that, it came out just like that. Beside it wasn't a bad idea now that he had stated he was his father. They would have received curious questions if they had different last names.

The brunette seemed to realize that he hadn't presented himself. "Ah... hm.. nice to meet you. I'm-"

"Oh no, wait. Let me guess." Minato cut, a grin appearing on his lips. He recognized him now. "The I-can't-lift-my-feet walk style, that perpetually bored voice, that brilliant aptitude for deduction and that sleepy gaze... I don't think I would be mistaken to say that you're part of the Nara clan."

"Err...Good guess." He replied, not bothering to come back on the sleepy gaze comment.

"You must be Shikaku's son? Shikamaru if I remember well."

"Yes, you know my father?"

"Sure I do! We did so many missions together, and with Inoichi and Chôza too."

"Mm..." Shikamaru nodded, trying to recall if he had already heard something about this Arashi.

Minato then turned to his son. "You're coming with me? I'm going to the Uchiha mansion."

"What for?"

"I'll tell you on the way." He saw than Naruto was hesitating. "You were planning something else?"

"Training." The young ninja answered.

"What for?" Minato also asked.

"For..." Something stopped him from telling him what had happened. He didn't really know what. Maybe he was too used to deal with it alone... But still, he didn't want Minato to be always forced to solve his problems. "... the Genin exam...?" He finally said, not really convinced himself.

That answer left two very surprised ninjas, especially Arashi whose eyes were wide opened. Okay, it wasn't exactly the best excuse... But he couldn't say it was to keep his level of Anbu in front of Shikamaru. Yondaime seemed to understand that more or less and didn't insist.

"If you want." He conceded. "I'll see the Uchihas and then we'll go to train together."

"Okay, let's go now then."

Yondaime's smile came back. "Right, what about a rac-"

Too late. The young ninja had not even waited for the end of his sentence to jump on the roofs.

"Naruto!" Minato shouted out. "Wait at least for the start... oh whatever." He turned to the brown haired boy. "Say hello to your father for me." He told him before leaving at an incredible speed.

Shikamaru quickly lost sight of them stayed here of a few seconds, thoughtful. "_I take back what I said... They really look alike._" A smirk also appeared on his lips. "_Those two must be so troublesome..."_

_°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°_

On Konoha's roofs, Naruto had lowered his pace to let his father catch up more quickly. The two ninjas were now running less fast.

"Why are we going there?" The young shinobi asked.

Minato gave him a few explanations. "You heard of the kidnapping attempt made on the Uchiha and Hyûga clans? ..."

Two or three minutes were enough to resume him the situation. "... And I thought you would agree to protect him as a team mate."

Naruto nodded, he wasn't against this semblance of a mission. "And the third member?"

"Not yet decided. They'll take care of that after the exam." He simply answered.

Shortly after, they arrived in front the Uchiha mansion's entrance. The door itself was already quite imposing. Minato sensed two Anbu guards not far from here but as they didn't revealed themselves, it meant that they had probably recognized him. He was going to ring when the door opened from the inside, revealing the owner of the property.

Naruto was meeting her for the first time. She was a young woman, apparently in her mid-thirties, whose deep onxy eyes were matching her long ebony hairs.

"Hello, I am Uchiha Mikoto." She introduced herself, offering them a warm smile. "I have been informed of your arrival by the guards so I suppose that I can trust you. Please, come in."

She closed the gate behind the ninjas and then turned to them, facing Minato at first. "You are?"

Yondaime seemed a bit disconcerted by the question, wondering why she didn't recognize him. "Eh, me? But... err... I'm-"

"The justu." Naruto only said, not even bothering to look at him. It wasn't the first time he had to remind him that. And surely not the last one.

"Oh yeah!" He remembered. "Kai!"

The cloud of smoke disappeared, revealing the true form of the shinobi.

"Yondaime-sama!" Mikoto seemed very surprised, which was normal because it was the first time she saw Arashi's appearance.

"I'm not Hokage anymore, just call me Minato please." If he had to repeat that ten times a day, he would quickly give up on that idea. Fortunately, this kunoichi accepted that more easily.

"Hm… All right then, Minato-san…"

"Thank you." He gladly said. The young woman then invited them to come inside the house. Apparently, Sasuke had not yet returned home. Considering how fast they had travelled, it wasn't very surprising. Once they were seated, Mikoto brought them tea and after a small talk, Yondaime explained the reason of their visit.

"I wish to speak about the Genin teams with you, I just discussed with Iruka and Sarutobi."

"Really?" She asked, suddenly looking anxious. "What have you decided?"

"Your request has immediately been understood, and if Sasuke pass, he will be place with Naruto and one of the best kunoichi."

Mikoto seemed incredibly relieved to hear those words. "Thank you so much." She said in a more joyful voice. "I am sorry to ask for so many changes but I really fear for his life since… last time. I cannot protect him forever and since he wants to be a shinobi, the Anbu will not be able to watch him permanently."

"It is pretty understandable." Minato assured her. "And that is no problem at all. But I believe that Sasuke and the third member shouldn't be informed of this, not right now at least."

"I think as much." Then she turned to the young ninja. "Thank you also Naruto-kun. I'm very grateful for that."

The boy wasn't really used to be called _Naruto-kun_, let alone to be thanked for doing a mission. It was a bit strange but not unpleasant either. But apparently, he looked slightly too surprised because Minato gave him a jog.

"Ah… hm, you are welcome."

The kunoichi was going to answer when they heard the sound of the outside door opening. "Kaa-san, I'm back." A young boy's voice called.

"Sasuke?"

Either he had walked very quickly, or they had wasted too much time. Both probably. Thinking about it, Naruto recalled that the Uchiha often left the Academy running away from a mod of fan-girls. Minato had barely the time to change back to Arashi before Sasuke came in.

"Kaa-… what are you doing here?" He said, catching sight of Naruto. His voice didn't express anger –yet- just plain stupefaction. "And who's that guy?" He asked, seeing the other shinobi. His voice… ah yes, it was slightly expressing annoyance now.

"Sasuke, mind your language please." Mikoto severely ordered. "This is Mi-"

"Arashi." Yondaime cut. "Namikaze Arashi." All this mess of names and faces was getting ridiculous, one day, he would really make a mistake.

"Hm, yes." Mikoto followed. "Arashi is.. err… he is…"

"Doing a mission with me." Naruto finished. The two adult shinobis were clever enough to stop themselves from turning round with a surprised face but they were still thinking it. "Godaime-sama sends us to bring the files Mikoto-san is working on." He was still able to invent pretty good excuses when it was needed.

"You have to be two for that?" He asked, a bit unbelieving.

"They were many files." The former Anbu simply answered.

The young Uchiha seemed almost ready to believe that when a doubt crossed his mind. "And why the Hokage would ask _you_ to do a mission?"

His mother was going to scold him but Naruto was faster. "Tsunade-sama wanted this job to be done quickly and as you know; my only skill is my speed, nothing else." He replied with a knowing look.

Sasuke had too well recognized his words, the very same he had spoken during the last tournament. Looking upset, he shrugged and left the room.

"Nice job." Arashi commented a while after, even he had not understood what the boys meant.

Mikoto nodded, she felt relieved but also a bit guilty to take care of him like that behind his back. She was sure he would hate the idea of being protected because he wanted so much to be a shinobi to rival his brother but this time, she wouldn't let him the choice.

Her gaze went from the door to stop on Naruto for a few moments. The son Yondaime was so different from hers… So different from the other children… That was something she had always believed before meeting him and deep down, she knew it was not completely untrue. But looking at him, besides his father, Mikoto couldn't help but consider him like a normal child.

And now she understood how wrong they had been to see him as the fox demon. His slited red eyes couldn't indeed appear a bit frightening but the way he had reprimand his father for the justu; the way he had created this little lie reminded much more a child than a monster. She realized only now how difficult it might have been for Minato. Alone to defend him against all.

She found herself thinking of what she would have done she had been in his place. Probably the same thing, she would never stop loving her son just because of a seal.

From the other side of the table, Yondaime saw the lips of the young woman curved in a nice smile while looking at Naruto. He didn't understand her reason but was still happy to know that she, at least, didn't seem to hate him. However, he saw a shadow of regret cross her face.

"You wish to tell him, do you?" He asked her.

The young woman sighed, resigned. "Yes, but I know he would be totally against it. It's better for him to ignore it for now."

"He will know later." Yondaime added to comfort her.

"That's what worries me." She answered, smiling.

They discussed like that for a few minutes, without mentioning the 'mission' in case Sasuke would come back. Minato put down the tea he had just finished.

"We will take our leave now." He finally said. Their visit had lasted longer that what he had planned and he didn't want to disturb her.

Mikoto nodded. Inwardly, she would have loved to discuss a little more. She only received few guests and this huge house seemed really so empty now. But she didn't want to force them to stay.

The shinobi stood up and the young woman went with them until the front door. "Thank you again for accepting my request, Mi… err.. Arashi-san." She said a bit embarrassed to be mistaken again.

"My pleasure. And don't worry; even I am confused with all these names." He admitted while going out.

Mikoto gave him an amused smile. "Goodbye."

"Goodbye." The two ninjas replied before dashing again on the roofs.

When they were out of sight, Mikoto close back the residence's gate. She went back in the house almost joyfully. Their visit had deeply relieved her, she knew now that her son would be protected by one of Konoha's best ninjas.

°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°

On the other side, Arashi and Naruto were now running toward the training grounds, at the border of the forest surrounding the village. They arrived only a few minutes later and the young ninja decided to stop on the number 47, which was one of the biggest.

"We're here."

"Hm.." Minato also stopped, but Naruto had the feeling he was thinking about something else.

The field was quite rugged because of all the jutsus that had been used here and a few weapons, shurikens and kunaïs, were scattered on the area. Having decided to start with a taijutsu warm-up, the two shinobi placed themselves at a distance of ten meters.

"You really don't want to tell me why you're suddenly so eager to train?" Yondaime asked.

As an answer, the young ninja took a fighting stance. He knew what would be the reaction of his father if he ever told him the incident that had happened in the Academy. Minato would get angry and willing to defend him, he would go to find this Jounin and tell her a few things. Even if Naruto liked the fact that he was always on his side, he didn't want to hide behind him all the time.

Seeing that his son wouldn't answer, Minato also prepared himself for the fight. "Okay, as you wish." The two shinobi then gathered their chakra and dashed forward at an incredible speed.

The first strike was so brutal that it forced them to move back. Naruto charged back at him first and during the next fifteen minutes, they exchanged series of blows and parade, each of them being more powerful than the previous one. Although he was the most offensive, Naruto had received a few blows but hadn't really been able to hit Minato.

On the other hand, Yondaime didn't looked out of breathe yet but even he had managed to dodge the most powerful hits, it had sometimes been very close. Not only his son seemed particularly energetic today, but himself, he was also a bit distracted.

He was thinking about the conversation that had occurred earlier in the Uchiha residence. A training of taijutsu so intense was probably the best time to do so but had not been able to prevent himself from feeling some confusing emotions while talking with Mikoto.

Maybe because she had reminded him so much of Kushina…

The two women were very different, physically at least. Mikoto had black hairs whereas Kushina's ones had this flaming red colour and her eyes were as dark as hers were clear. And yet, in some ways, he had the feeling they looked so much alike. Too much alike…

Minato made a back flip to dodge a kick flying this way. From where did this feeling come from? Was it the sound of their clear voices… or their attitude, the way they were walking, so delicate but looking like royalty in the same time… or maybe the kind and sweet way they smiled…?

Probably everything.

But above all, what Mikoto's words had reminded him what how deeply they cared for their sons and how far they would go to protect them.

A memory was now coming back in his mind, a memory of the days Kushina was still alive. When she had learned that she was pregnant, she had a bit complained at the idea of having a break in her ninja duties but had quickly forgotten that deception. Minato was never tired of hearing her joyfully speaking about her future son.

"_Are you going to protect him all his life?_" He had playfully asked one day she had that particularly mother-hen behaviour.

"_Baka_" She replied, smiling. "_That won't be necessary because I know he will become a ninja. A strong and cunning ninja…_"

Minato blocked a fist which was aiming for his head. Memories were uncontrollably flowing back. "_And I'm sure he will look like me!_" She had told him another day.

He had laughed and protested a little. "_Oh no, I'm totally sure that he will prefer too look like his father_."

"_No way!_"

Their gazes had crossed, a look of challenge appearing on their faces. Words were not even necessary between them and in the same movement; they had hidden their fists behind their back. "_Jan-ken!_" (1)

Paper against Rock.

"_Oh okay. He'll look like you._" Kushina had finally conceded, folding her arms in an attempt to look upset. But she had quickly returned to her joyful mood. "_But he will have my smile!_"

In the end, she had been right almost everywhere. Naruto had indeed become a ninja, a truly powerful ninja and he looked just like him. He jumped on the side to duck another blow and faced once more those blood red eyes, this face so concentrated but in the same time, so indifferent.

But as for the smile...

Sometimes, he wondered what Kushina would think if she could be here. Her dearest dream had been to see her son grow up; she would have been distraught to see what kind of child he was now. Minato had again this heart-clutching feeling of regret, so intense that it seemed he was physically hit.

And he was indeed hit. By a punch in the stomach.

Brutally pulled back in the real world, he moved a little back and then launched again forward. But Naruto was now used to the speed of the fight and his reflexes were sharper. He deflected Yondaime's fist and flipped backwards a few times to put some distance between them. The young ninja was going to counter-attack when he noticed that his father was no more in a fighting stance and absently gazed at him. It wasn't the first time he saw that look on his face since the beginning of their training.

"What is it?"

Minato couldn't help but gaze at his son for a few moments. "I was thinking about your mother..." He finally admitted in voice filled with sadness.

If there was something Naruto had not expected, it was that. He couldn't find anything to answer to those words. Yondaime had revealed him Kushina was his mother shortly after his return but at that time, he had not pay much attention. Now, he was looking at it with new eyes. After knowing his father, he had sometimes told himself that he would have liked to meet his mother. But he had never thought of telling that to Minato.

Seeing him in so much pain, he realized that he should have probably told him. A pregnant silence took place between the two shinobi. If Naruto had not locked his eyes on the ground, unable to bear his father's gaze, the older ninja might have seen them enlightened by a violet flash. The young shinobi was going to offer him to go back home but he was caught unprepared.

"Let's keep on with the training... I think we should begin the ninjutsu now."

Naruto was a bit taken by surprise by that sudden change of subject. Yondaime's mood seemed to have immediately brightened up and he found that a little strange. Not to mention that his look had not lost that melancholic gleam. He hesitated one second but finally decided to follow him.

"Okay..."

His smile came back and Minato moved a little bit forward. "So, show me how's your Rasengan." A little bit, but not too much. He was not exactly thrilled at the idea of a Rasengan blowing up in his face.

Naruto nodded and held his right hand open in front of him. He closed his eyes to concentrate and began to gather his chakra in his palm. Rotation now. The ball of energy slowly began to turn on itself, slowly at first and then faster and faster. His sapphire eyes focused back on the orb and he increased its power. The sphere was still small and he was pumping his chakra in it, more and more...

… until its explosion.

The two ninjas had to cover their eyes because of the violent burst o energy. Naruto was the first to open them and glanced at his hand which was slightly burned due the important concentration of chakra.

"Well... there's undoubtedly some progress." Yondaime began. "But I think you could still... oh, did you hurt yourself?"

The young ninja followed the gaze of his father and then realized that the thin wound on his hand had opened again and was slightly bleeding.

"It's nothing, just a scratch." He replied, quickly wiping his hand on his jacket.

Minato came to him. "That's not a reason for-" He stopped and lift his foot, he thought he had walked on something stuck in the ground. He took the object and saw that it was a shuriken, which had one point still tainted in red.

Naruto touched his pocked and silently cursed himself; he should have thrown it right away. The shuriken had surely fallen when he was doing his back flips. Luckily, Minato didn't see his movement.

"I didn't throw any shuriken." He said, thoughtful.

"There were plenty of them already left here." Naruto tried.

Minato's cerulean eyes went back on his wound and his voice became more suspicious. "It was raining yesterday and this morning. The other weapons are not as clean as this one and they more on the borders of the grounds... None of us threw shurikens and yet, this one landed just between us two."

The Yellow Flash was indeed very observant, and Naruto didn't really see what he could object him.

"It's yours, isn't it? And the one that hit you?" Taking his silence for a yes, Yondaime went on. "And just how did you hurt yourself?"

For the second time in a few minutes, the young ninja looked away. If he started to answer now, he would have to tell him the whole story.

"Naruto." Minato's voice was calm but firm.

"An accident." He reluctantly replied. "During the Academy's class."

He only seemed more interested now. "You want me to believe that a former Anbu was caught by Genin students?"

"It was just an accident."

Yondaime sighed and knelt on the ground to be at eye-level. "Why do I have the feeling you're not telling me everything?" Sensing that he still hesitated to answer, Minato put a hand on his shoulder and forced the boy to look straight at him. "Naruto. You know I'll always be on your side. You can tell me."

The young ninja was now facing those blue azure eyes. Those eyes that looked so much like the ones he saw in his mind and to whom he couldn't hide anything.

"During the Kawarimi training." He finally confessed. "The Jounin woman who was giving the class threw shurikens without warning. I was looking away at this time and I barely dodge them."

That's why he didn't want to tell him. He saw Minato's gaze beginning to be filled with bitterness and above all, a rising anger and he felt his grip tighten on his shoulder.

"She did that on purpose? To hurt you?"

It's wasn't even a question and Naruto only nodded. Yondaime could hardly believe what he had just heard. He knew the skills of his son and even he was distracted, if he had only barely dodged the shurikens, it meant that this kunoichi had really thrown them with the intent of hurting him badly. That wasn't something an Academy teacher was supposed to do. And the fact that she had dared doing it in front of the whole class showed how much she hated her young student.

Minato painfully closed his eyes, overwhelmed by a feeling of guilt. "I'm sorry Naruto…" He whispered. He didn't deserve that. When would those idiots finally understand that? When would they stop to see him as the fox demon? It was so unfair!

He slowly got up again and threw the treacherous shuriken away. His blue eyes were shinning with anger, there was no way he was letting that pass. "I'm going back to the Academy, she will not get away that easily!" He said while turning around.

But he felt something holding him back. "No."

Minato glanced at his son, a disbelieving look appearing on his face. "What?"

"There's no need to go."

"No need?" Yondaime repeated. "That kunoichi had absolutely no right to do that. Being an Anbu level ninja doesn't mean that she can harm you and hope to get out of it without any blame! And blames, I swear she's going to have some!"

Naruto was trying to make him change his mind. He really didn't want to inflame their situation. "There's no point in doing that." He simply said.

The cold resignation which filled his voice left Minato speechless.

"It will just give them another reason to hate me." The boy continued. "Even if they respect Yondaime, they'll only pretend to obey."

Minato didn't know what sadden the most. The fact that Naruto silently accepted to be hated without any reason or that himself, now understood the truth in the arguments of his son? And who should he listen to now, the voice of reason or the voice of justice? The two had never seemed so contradictory.

"Don't go." He heard again.

"No, Naruto… It's too unfair." He protested, almost begging. "Even if you're already a young extremely powerful, you're only eleven years old. You don't have to suffer from that, not because of the adult shinobis. Just let me-"

"I can defend myself. As long as I'm on the same level."

"_Yes, you can protect yourself but you shouldn't have to do it!_" Minato thought, unable to convince him. He was going to reply but he suddenly remembered a detail. "On the same level… That's why you wanted to train today?"

Naruto nodded. "I can face them, they don't impress me. I'll keep on training, and they'll understand, one day… You can… trust me."

The young boy was as surprised as his father to hear those words coming out of his mouth. It wasn't exactly the kind of things he was used to say but… despite that, he really wished for Yondaime to trust him and not to feel guilty for everything. He could take care of that by himself.

Minato felt his resistance weakening. A few minutes before, he was ready to give that kunoichi hell and worse but now, he was wondering if it was the right thing to do. Naruto was probably telling the truth after all, even if the idea of staying passive didn't really please him.

Kushina's words echoed once more in his memory. "_A strong and cunning ninja… who will also be loyal and brave.._."

A light smile came back on his lips. Shikaku, who had been the first to get married, had often told him that he should _never_ discuss with women. They were always right.

"I believe in you." He finally said. "I know you can do it."

Naruto nodded, he liked to be trusted. "But promise me to always tell me." Yondaime warned him.

"Okay."

Minato couldn't help but stroke affectionately his blond hairs; he was so happy that Naruto acted more naturally with him now. He sent a thought to his only memories. "_You would be proud of him, Kushina…"_

Then he focused back on the present time and his attention came back on their training. Even if Naruto wanted to manage that alone, it didn't mean he couldn't help him to become stronger.

"Show me again your Rasengan." He asked him. "We'll try to fix that little 'explosive' problem."

Naruto didn't need to be told that twice. After so many weeks of training, he really wanted to master that technique flawlessly. It was undoubtedly very powerful and Minato had told him that it could be possible to add some other personal modifications. But he had to control the basic form first.

The weather remained clear the whole afternoon and the two shinobi trained until nightfall. If somebody had tried to enter the grounds, he would maybe thought that he heard sounds of fireworks and would be surprise to see that the sky was as dark as it usually was. But if that person had come closer, he would have quickly understood what caused those noises. Or at least, he would just have enough time to understand before being surprised by a dazzling explosion of chakra.

TBC...

* * *

Well, I think you already understood that Jan-ken was the paper-rock-scissor game

So, what did you think of this chap ?  
I'll try to go faster with the translation next time,  
don't forget that reviews always motivate me more^^

See ya !


	9. Chap 8: Second Chance

Guess who's back??  
yes, it's me! the writer who only updates once a year!!

I'm really sorry for taking so long; I had some 'family issues' and I couldn't find my… inspiration, motivation, or whatever it's called. Well, to make it short, I had kind of forgotten my forgotten prisoner, gomenasai!

This chapter is particularly dedicated to **Hitsugayatoshirou1220**. She really pushed me to continue my story and I'm very glad I listened to her^^ As promised, I updated before March. So really, Thank You. It's nice to have a reader like you!

But of course, I love all my readers! I would like to thank to **sousie** who also sent me a PM.  
And thanks to **Skidney1, afallenheart, Dean The Cuddly Fox, crazzyredhead, XxXxFading DreamxXxX, Gin-San, Twilightaddict102, SLTora, Rangerfan58, FifthDayOfMay, OverLordRevan, Hektols, FM, aki6, Sacred3, elemental man, Shinichi06, The Three Stoogies, ShuUreI814, Pewinov, c im am a dragon, Elitewarr, InARealPickle, sweetXsunshine** and all the people who reviewed the previous chapters.  
You're the best !!

For those who read the story a long time ago and don't remember well –that's often my case-, I wrote you a short summary of the whole story. There you go :

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Summary: During a Chûnin exam, Orochimaru attacks Konoha and while he fights against Sandaime, he brings back to life the three dead Hokages. But after his jutsu and the encounter between Naruto and Minato, the Shinigami is summoned and he cancels the technique. So Yondaime comes back in the living world but realizes that nothing went on like he had hoped. Naruto has been trained in the Anbu brigade and became a cold and indifferent ninja. Minato enrolled him in the Academy, hoping that he will make friends even if he is still doing some missions.

Father and son leave with Kakashi, looking Godaime and met Temari in Kaze no Kuni. The young girl gets along with Naruto pretty well but just as they find Tsunade, they're attacked and Naruto is badly wounded. While the Sannin heals him, they discover a mysterious seal which could explain his red eyes. When they return in Konoha with Godaime, they learn that the Uchihas and the Hyûgas have been attacked and they decide to put Naruto in the team of Sasuke so that he could protect him after the Genin exam. Until the test, he goes to school, tries to ignore his annoying teachers and trains with his father to master the Rasengan

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Special news: I thought a bit about that and finally, I decided it will not be a Minato/Mikoto. I've got another idea! So much better!!  
It's a Naruto/Temari, a Minato/remains single and for the others, you'll see later.

I hope you will not get bored of my English mistakes, I tried to corrected them as much as I could.

But you're not here to read all of this, back to the story!!

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto, Masashi Kishimoto does.

* * *

_Forgotten Prisoner_

_Chapter 8: Second Chance_

°-°-°-°-° Five days later °-°-°-°-°

The village of Konoha was slowly awakening in this hazy morning. The shops had not yet opened their doors but the street's activity was becoming more and more important. In the garden of a midtown house, a man was peacefully watching the clouds, a cigarette at the corner of his lips. Not far from the bench where he was seating, little sparrows were seeking their first meal of the day.

"NARA SHIKAMARU!!!" All the birds flew away. "WAKE UP !!"

Shikaku sighed, creating a cloud of smoke. Every morning, it was the same thing… He wasn't the only one in the district who had got used to those daily conversations –one-sided conversations to be more precise- between Yoshino and her son. Even if today, her shouts were kind of justified.

"THAT'S THE LAST TIME! IF YOU'RE NOT DOWNSTAIRS IN FIVE SECONDES-"

"Okay, okay… I'm here now." Another voice replied, clearly less energetic. Shikaku didn't need to see him to guess his thoughts at this moment. Something like "_Troublesome_…"

"Hurry up and eat you breakfast or you'll be late!!" Yoshino said before walking back in the kitchen.

Shikaku chose this moment to come in. Putting out his cigarette, he went directly in the dining room and saw his son, silently sitting on his chair. The boy was tuning back and his head was resting on his fist in a unstable balance. "So, ready for the big day?" He asked him.

He didn't receive the slightest answer, not even a nod so he walked in and leant forward to look at his face. What he saw made him roll his eyes.

"If your mother ever sees you, we're good for another-"

He didn't have the time to finish; Yoshino had stormed back in the dining room. "How can you lie around when you know you have an ex… HE'S STILL SLEEPING !?!"

°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°

All the houses were not that noisy in the morning. Some were so calm, so peaceful and so quiet that an outsider could have thought that they were empty. It was exactly like that in the mansion of the Aburame clan, well-known for their Olympian serenity and their unfailing self-control.

In the lounge, a young ninja with black glasses was sitting at the table, facing another older shinobi who had also a pair of glasses. Shibi and Shino were both speaking in an low and slow voice.

"The day has come."

"Yes."

"Are you ready?"

"Yes."

"Good."

The silence which followed that short exchanged was only cut by the birds' chirping outside. Probably the refugees from the Nara's garden.

°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°

But there were more normal breakfast atmospheres in the village. Besides all the parents weren't always among the shinobi ranks. Some were simple civilians, like the Haruno couple.

A feminine voice echoed in the corridor of their house. "Sakura? Are you ready?"

"Coming!" Immediately, a young girl came in the lounge. In one hand, she was holding a book on the Academy basic techniques and in the other, a little mirror. She sat down in front of the table, putting down the two objects on both sides of her plate.

Her emerald gaze was constantly waving between the book and the mirror, testing her knowledge on one side and examining her appearance on the other. Her mother came back at this moment and smiled at this sight.

"Are you still studying darling? You should relax a bit before the test."

"But Kaa-san, I want to stay at the top or I'll-"

The young woman stopped her by closing her book and her mirror at the same time. "You're already tat the top." She added, giving her a flick on the nose. "So relax, okay?"

Sakura sighed but she had to admit that it wasn't a bad idea. She focused back on her breakfast, a little bit less nervous.

"Your father already went to work." Her mother told her from the other room. "He wishes you good luck."

The kunoichi nodded, even if her family didn't knew much about the ninja world, she was still glad that her parents always cheered for her.

Before leaving the table when she was finished, Sakura slowly opened again her mirror. She faced her reflection and clenched her fist. "I'm going to pass and I'll be in a team with Sasuke-kun." She said in a confident voice. "I won't lose against Ino!"

°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°

A few streets next to this house, another young girl was also facing her mirror. "I will not lose against Sakura!" Ino said in a determined tone.

Telepathy? Intuition? Coincidence?

Whatever it could be, the two kunoichi were ready to do their best in this exam in order to reach the side of their national crush. For better or for worse.

Ino brushed her long blond hair one last time before tiding them in a ponytail. She faced her reflection during a few minutes, performing the twelve shinobi seals one after the other and searching for the slightest flaw. Finally satisfied, she went down in the dining room where she found her father.

"Ohayo!"

"Ohayo. So, how do you feel this morning? Nervous?"

"No, but I'm not really hungry." She said, glancing at the table and the meals.

Inoichi tried to be a little bit more strict, today, he would not let her go so easily. "Don't start again with that 'diet' thing, Ino. No breakfast, no exam." He warned her.

"But Tou-san..." Ino began, but she seemed to realize that he was serious and resigned herself. "Okay..." Sighing, she sat down on her chair.

The blond shinobi didn't hold back his smile, glad to see he could still have some authority when it was needed. His wife always complained that he was too soft with her. Glancing at the clock, he realized that he would be late if he waited too much.

"I have to go. Good luck for your exam." He said, kissing her on her forehead. "I know you'll pass."

After a last wave, he went out. When he was gone, Ino thought that she could stop eating now but she did an exception just for today. After all, her father was an experienced Jounin so he should know his stuff.

A few minutes later, she was also ready to go. But before that, she made a detour by the store to tell her mother she was leaving. The flower shop looked like a jungle, full of plants and flowers of all sorts. The dominant colour in here was green, the colour of luck.

Her deep blue eyes went over the different plants as a hopeful smile appeared on her lips.

"I'll be with Sasuke-kun!"

°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°

If the young Uchiha had had the slightest idea of the double problem awaiting him, he wouldn't have been so eager to do this exam.

Even if he didn't want to admit it, he was pretty impatient. Reaching the rank of Genin was the first step and he wasn't going to stop there, his goal was far more ambitious. The only thing he disliked was the idea of being part of a team. But as long as they didn't bother him, it would be okay.

He was going to leave but as he walked through the lounge, he stopped in front of a shelf, and his gaze went over an old frame.

Sasuke didn't understand why his mother wanted so badly to keep that picture. All he could see in it were his parents and a traitor. He clenched his fist, one day he would truly make him pay his crime and to do so, he had to become stronger.

Totally focused on his thoughts of revenge, he didn't saw his mother who entered the room. Mikoto had came to call him but she stayed silent, seeing him like that, filled by sheer cold anger in front of their old family picture. She had never managed to make him abandon his desire of revenge. If somebody else had been here, he could have seen her ebony eyes being darkened by an unspeakable sadness.

But when she called her son, her voice didn't betrayed her feelings. "Sasuke, are you ready?"

The young boy turned round, a bit surprised, he didn't heard her come in. He nodded as she moved forward to hug him. He kept silent, even he wasn't really fond of this kind of affective demonstration.

"I see you can't wait to be promoted." She said with a smile.

"I'll pass."

"I'm sure you will." Indeed, she didn't doubt his success, but she just hoped he would be able to work his team.

She stayed on the front steps as he went out and couldn't stop herself from teasing him a little bit.

"See you later, Sasuke-chan!"

"Kaa-san!" He shouted out, blushing. He didn't complained if he was called like that when they were alone, but now he knew that the Anbu guards were not that far away. He left hastily, just hoping that they hadn't heard it.

°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°

In another area of the village, another heir of another family was also preparing for the exam . The huge mansion of the Inuzuka clan was as noisy as the Aburame's was calm and their house full of life and animation was the exact contrary of the Uchiha residence.

On the grounds, at the back of the house, a young kunoichi was beginning her morning exercises with her dogs, trained to assist ninjas. Well, to be more precise, she was still trying to begin her training.

Even if she was outside, she could hear as well as if she had been on the other side of the door.

"Stop that! Come back here!!"

"KIBA! ENOUGH NOW!"

"It's not me!"

"Waf!"

"Akamaru! Stop!"

Focus on her ninjutsus while shouts and barks echoed in the house was not easy. If somebody in Konoha could understand Shikaku, it was Hana. Every morning it was the same thing... Her family didn't need any alarm clock, Kiba was perfectly enough.

"Come back!" She heard again.

Hana opened the door and she was going to tell them to shut up when a white fur ball literally flew right under her nose. It was her brother's dog and just as he was turning at the corner of the corridor, she saw that he was chewing on something.

The kunoichi didn't get enough time to think about it because five seconds later, Kiba was also racing in front of the door, resolving the mystery. He followed Akamaru and turned at the corner. She sighed deeply. Why did she have to get a hyperactive little brother ? And why had he got a hyperactive dog?

Deciding that she could yell on them later, Hana locked the door. Calling back her dogs, she focused again on her training while the sounds of a racing game and the shouts of Kiba resounded in the house.

"I don't have time to play Akamaru! Give back my pants!!"

°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°

Sometimes, Inuzuka Tsume really envied the Hyûga family. Hiashi at least, didn't have overexcited kids and dogs running in all the corridors of his mansion. Although some members of the clan would have not been against some more liveliness in this house. Like Hinata.

The young girl was sitting in front of a table, facing her father. As usual, his face didn't show any emotion and his voice was strict. His white eyes where focused on Hinata who kept her head lowered, unable to look straight at him.

"The examination day has finally come." Hiashi began.

The shy kunoichi silently nodded, guessing what would come next.

"As heir of the Hyûga clan, you know that failure will not be allowed. Your sister has already reached the level of Genin..."

Hinata held back a sigh, how many time had he compared her to her young sister..? But still, she wasn't jealous. All she wanted was to be acknowledge by her father and not only seen as a weak kunoichi.

"…I hope that you will not bring shame on our name once again." He finished.

"Haï, Otou-sama."

"Good. You can go now, do not be late."

The young girl stood up and bowed a little before going out. But as she closed the door, she found herself facing her sister. She had probably heard their conversation, as usual.

"Ohayo Hanabi." She only said.

Once outside, she began to walk toward the Academy. But as she turned back one last time, she was surprised to see the head of her sister poking out of the door. Hanabi silently mouthed a few words before going back inside. Her short appearance had slightly startled Hinata but she managed to catch her words.

"Good Luck."

She was really glad to know that at least, somebody was cheering for her in this house. Now smiling, she made her way toward the school.

°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°

The atmosphere at the Akimichi residence was far less austere, as usual during the breakfast. If there was a clan in Konoha that could be qualified of convivial, it was this one. Their house wasn't the biggest and their family not as famous or powerful as the Hyûga or the Uchiha but it was simply welcoming.

Right now, Chôji was sitting in the dining room with his father, talking about the exam, and unlike a certain blonde kunoichi, he didn't need to be forced to eat properly.

"I remember, the day before the exam I couldn't sleep because I was to nervous and I almost took a nap during the genjutsu test." Chôza told him, laughing. "Besides, Shikaku almost did the same thing. But for him, it was just out of habit."

Chôji laughed a little but he was a bit tensed. "I'm not really good in genjutsu." He admit.

"But you're getting better in taijutsu, aren't you?" His father said. "And don't forget you have our family's jutsus."

The young ninja nodded, at least he mastered pretty well the techniques of his clan.

"Who would you like to be paired with?" Chôza suddenly asked.

"Shikamaru." He answered without hesitation. The Nara heir was his best friend and they knew how to work in a team. "Maybe Kiba, he's a bit loud but he's nice and strong. There's also Shino, even if I don't really know him. But I hope I'm going to be paired with Sasuke, he thinks he's so incredible..."

The older shinobi smiled as he listened his son talking, he enjoyed having his opinion about the other ninja wannabe of his class. Well, when he said wannabe... "You told me something about an Uzumaki last time, would you like to be paired with him?"

Chôji thought a bit about that. "I don't know." He said. "Sometimes he's kind of.. nice, not mean at least. He went with us a few times to watch the clouds, even if he didn't stay long and Shika always.. often talks with him. But still, he looks so.. indifferent, it's impossible to guess what he's thinking."

Chôza raised an eyebrow, he understood perfectly this feeling.

"But he's really strong. I wouldn't complain if I was in his team."

"They always try to balance the teams, you'll probably have a kunoichi in your group." His father pointed out.

Chôji crossed his arms, he didn't really know the girls of his class. "Sakura is the best, but she always besides Sasuke, that's kind of boring. There's also Ino, but she glued at the other side of the Uchiha." He sighed. Even he talked open-heartily with his father, he didn't want to tell him that he found the Yamanaka girl very pretty. He listed a few other kunoichi. "... And Hinata, but I've never really talked with her, she's so shy."

Chôza and him talked a little bit more then he gathered his things and went out. It was a now confident ninja who took the road toward the Academy. Thinking about his future team mates had made him less nervous and the exam didn't seem so insurmountable anymore.

°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°

As Chôji said, it was quite difficult to guess what Naruto was thinking. But the fact is that now, he wasn't really thinking about anything. He was still in their dining room, and just watched Minato coming in and out of all the different rooms of their apartment. Ten minutes ago, a shinobi had came to deliver a mission order to Yondaime.

Minato had reluctantly taken the scroll and had began to prepare his things after reading it. Apparently, it was a relatively important diplomatic mission. Minato seemed so busy now that it almost looked as if he was the one taking the exam.

Naruto saw him passing again and again in front of the door, and each time, he managed to hear a few words. "I'm sorry Naruto. But this mission is really.... unexpected and even if I ask Tsunade to replace me.... I don't think she could do it. It seems.... that it comes from the Daimyo himself."

Yondaime was quite annoyed about that mission, did it really have to be just today? The actual Daimyo had support him and help him to convince the Council so he couldn't refuse even if he had truly wanted to be here for the exam of his son. Of course, it wasn't a challenge for the young ninja but Minato wished to congratulate him and it seemed unfair that he couldn't be among the other parents.

"Well, it's not a long term mission. I should be here tomorrow at least." He added.

Naruto nodded, although he also wanted Minato to be here. It was his father who had registered him in the Academy and receiving his hitai-ate as a Genin if he was not with him didn't made much sense.

He cleaned the table and prepared to go outside. On the other side, Yondaime also seemed ready and caught up with Naruto at the front door while putting his Jounin jacket on.

"Well, at least I don't have to worry about the results." He said, smiling. He ruffled a bit the blond hair of his son. "We'll celebrate that when I come back." He promised.

"Celebrate?" The young boy asked, surprised.

"I know you were an Anbu but you never pass the Genin exam didn't you?"

Naruto had to admit it was true. He had been trained either by some Council members or by the brigade shinobis and never had another official rank except Anbu. Because of that special training, he had never taken part neither in the Genin test, nor the Chûnin test and let alone the Jounin test. That was why this exam meant so much for them now.

They went out together and a few minutes later, Minato headed toward the gates of the village while Naruto continued on his way to the Academy.

One or two street away from the school, he came down of the roofs and joined the crowd of students. In the corridors, he spotted Chôji who was proudly walking in the classroom. Then he heard the daily symphony of shouts and laughs which came with the morning arrival of _Sasuke-kuuuun_. Naruto went at the back of the class and sat down near the window, besides Shikamaru who only opened his eyes to greet him and Chôji.

Shortly after, their teacher entered and for once, silence came automatically. Stressed and nervous, the students were more or less impatient to begin the test.

"Ohayo." Iruka said. "As you all know, you are now going to pass the Genin exam. The first examination in your career of shinobi." He was glad to see gleams of hope and determination appear in many eyes. "Their will be four tests-"

Iruka was suddenly cut by a banging door. Turning the head, he saw that one of his student was standing in the entrance.

"Haa… Haa.. sorry Sensei…" Some laughs erupted in the classroom at the sight of Kiba, out of breath and leaning against the frame of the door. "It's… Aka… maru.. he.. Haaa…"

With a last exhausted sigh, Kiba tragically collapsed his eyes half closed. There was a general sweatdrop while Akamaru happily jumped and barked around his master, completely ruining his dramatic act. Surprisingly, it was Shino, sitting besides the door, who spoke first.

"If you want to look persuasive, you should start by closing your pants."

The students burst out laughing when the young immediately stood up, blushing and turned round to put back his clothes correctly. After that, he quickly went to his seat and Iruka could continue his speech.

"Thank you for this brilliant intervention, Kiba.." He joked before speaking seriously. "So, as I was saying, the exam is divided in four tests. This morning, there will be the writing exam- Yes, there is a writing exam." He said, hearing some annoyed whispers. "Then the test of taijutsu will take place in the second gymnasium: you will have to fight as long as you can against one of the Academy's sensei who will assess your technique. This afternoon, there will be the genjutsu test: you will have to detect and counter illusions. And last but not least, the individual test of ninjutsu: you will be asked to perform three basic jutsus. Questions?"

"Sensei, which test is the most important?"

"The ninjutsu test, without any doubt. A student will hardly be promoted if he has not succeeded. But that does mean you can forget the three others." He warned them before distributing the exam papers. "You have two hours to answer the questions, from…" Just as he glanced at his watch, the bell rang. "From now. Hajime."

The students turned their sheets and began to read the questions. Iruka walked between the desks, observing his class. Focused and attentive, the young ninja apprentices were all doing their best to reach the Genin rank they longed for. Some were still thinking about the questions, some had already begun to write, and other… were finishing their night…

The Chûnin went to the back. At the last row, he gently shook the shoulder of his student. "Oï Shikamaru." He whispered. "Wake up."

The only answer he received was a sleepy growl. "The test has already started, just to let you know." Iruka told him. After a few seconds, the young Nara finally agreed to lift the head. Satisfied, his sensei went back to his desk while Shikamaru glanced at the questions, looking more than annoyed.

"_Genjutsu Theory… Law and Rules of the Ninjas… Basis of Taijutsu… Chakra and Ninjutsu… History of France… History of the Elemental Countries… tch.. mendokusai..._"

His head slumped on the table and he sighed deeply. He had never been really good at writing exams. The problem was… that he had to write precisely. The only idea of moving his arm during two whole hours already made him tired. His IQ of 200 was good for reflexion, not for action.

Iruka couldn't help but smile when he saw the young genius sigh again. If only he did some efforts, he could easily outclass the best students of his class.

His gaze went over the rest of the class. Some looked quite nervous and always glanced at the clock. Others, like Sakura or Ino, seemed calmer but were still writing very quickly. And there were the ones that nothing could ever distract and who didn't seem to understand the meaning of the word stress, such as Shino.

Observing again the lasts rows, he was dismayed to see that a certain brown haired student was still meditating and hadn't written anything yet. As if he was asking himself if it was really worth of it… Iruka might not be very far from the truth. Then his gaze fell on the student sitting next to Shikamaru. He wasn't surprised to see that Naruto didn't block on any question and was calmly writing, the young ninja would probably pass with the best results. Iruka hadn't got the time to talk with him about his mission but he had received a note from Yondaime saying he agreed.

The Chûnin was pulled out of his thought when he saw that Naruto had stop writing. His blood red eyes turned toward the window for a few moments and then he focused back on his paper. Iruka wondered which question had made him hesitate, even if he had a little idea.

Naruto had begun the part about the history of Konoha. He had answered the first eight without any problem but had doubted a bit about the ninth.

_Describe in a few lines the events of the 10__th__ October, eleven years ago._

To be honest, he was tempted to write the truth even if he knew that the Academy teachers would prefer the official version. Did they know that he was aware of the Kyûbi? From the window, he had a clear view of the Hokage Mountain and he gazed at the image of Yondaime. Once more, he thought about what his father had done for him. Many things had changed since his arrival, so one more could do much harm…

Naruto focused again on his paper and answered without hesitation.

The rest of the test didn't give him more problems; he even finished early and took his time to watch the others. Besides him, Shikamaru seemed a bit more awake now and was answering quite easily. At the front rows, he saw Shino who was writing slowly but didn't stop even for a second unlike Kiba who stopped every minute and then wrote again at top speed. At the first row, he saw his future teammate hesitating over a question. Looking at the other kunoichi, he wondered who would be the third member.

Ten minutes later, the bell rang again, ending the writing exam. Some student put down their pens almost immediately, satisfied by their performance, while others were trying to glean some precious seconds to finish a sentence. "Stop writing now, it's over." Iruka said, gathering the sheets. "You can go out if you have already hand in your paper. You have a twenty minute break and you have to go to the gymnasium so don't hang around too long."

"Haï sensei."

The second gymnasium was outside of the Academy grounds, it was an old training centre that had been rebuild and was now used by the student although their class had only went there one time. It was located behind the training grounds and forest.

Naruto went out with the last students and follow the rest of his class. He saw Iruka going in the opposite direction, carrying a big pile of papers. While walking, he was listening to the talks of the other students. The one he heard the best was the conversation between two kunoichi.

"The part about taijutsu was a bit difficult, but I'm sure I'll have it!" Sakura claimed. "What about you, Sasuke-kun?"

"Hn."

"I scored big at the genjutsu questions, but even if I blocked a little on the rules and law I'll get it too." Ino said. "We could be in the same team, don't you think it would be nice Sasuke-kun?"

"Hn."

"I knew it!" "In your dreams Ino-buta!" "Deko-Sakura!" yay, one more time...

They were followed by a group of three boys. "Say, how do they understand what he's saying?" Chôji asked. "That's not an answer, 'Hn'."

Naruto totally agreed with him about that. The Uchiha were seriously lacking conversation, Sasuke and his brother were both quit different from their mother in that field. Naruto was maybe not very talkative but at least he could do full sentences.

"Pff, how should I know?" Kiba replied. " Maybe it's girl thing, they're all doing the same."

"So troublesome..." Shikamaru muttered.

Naruto really didn't know if he was talking about the girls, Sasuke, the exam or life in general. The genius Nara could have 'Troublesome' written on his forehead, he would have given the same impression. But the blond ninja had to admit he found that funny.

Naruto was walking on the roads between the training grounds. Still thinking, he almost missed to detect a presence. It was totally surrounding them although very weak and once he located it, it disappeared. He had only enough time to catch a chakra signature; he didn't know it's owner but it didn't seem threatening. Curious, he stayed focused and continues to walk behind the other students. After a few steps, he immediately understood the problem.

They had walked too much.

"Genjutsu..." He whispered.

But why were they trapped in an illusion? It could be part of the exam but Iruka had told them it would take place this afternoon in...

Of course. He had never told them where they would pass the genjutsu test. It was a double trap which required observation, evaluation and judgement. Naruto made a simple seal with his right hand. "Kaï."

The landscape seemed to fade and slowly disappeared. A few seconds later, he found himself standing in front of the back door of the Academy, besides Iruka. That surprised him because the genjutsu had made him think he was already in the forest. Even if it wasn't an area he mastered wonderfully well, the fact that he had not detected an illusion so important was the proof of the user's skills.

"Uzumaki, you pass." His sensei said. "You can wait here."

Naruto nodded, wondering who had created the genjutsu. Even if he thought highly of Iruka, he knew it wasn't him because he had not recognized the chakra signature. The young ninja froze. Iruka had called him Uzumaki? That wasn't like him. He glanced at the Chûnin and saw that he was writing something on his notebook. Speaking of it... wasn't he supposed to be correcting their exams?

Performing the seal once more, Naruto had to admit that the exam was pretty well done. "Kaï."

This time, the silhouette of Iruka faded. He was replaced by a brown haired young woman with red eyes. She glanced at her stopwatch.

"2 minutes and 47 seconds. Impressive." She smiled at him.

He recognized the kunoichi; she was a Jounin, the best genjutsu specialist besides the Hokage himself. For that, she had received the title of "Genjutsu Princess".

"Thank you, hm..." What was her name again? "Yuuhi-san.." He said, hoping he was right.

"You can call me Kurenaï." Oh yeah, Kurenaï. "Your perception skills are very good; I had to strengthen the first illusion so that you wouldn't detect it."

"But the genjutsu was easy to break." He pointed out.

"Yes, it still an Academy exam after all."

The young boy nodded and sat down, his back leaning against the wall. He was curious to see if the Rookies of the year, Sakura and Sasuke, would also be the first.

The kunoichi was pleased by that, she was now a little ashamed to think that he would have walked away, not caring about the results of the others. A few months ago, that was probably what he would have done and Kurenaï was glad too see he was changing. She had met the young ninja a few times when he was still Anbu had to admit she had not really liked him. Fortunately, Yondaime came back and the kunoichi had not been the only to realize her mistake. The ones who thought like her were maybe not the majority but their number was slowly increasing.

Kurenaï focused back on the exam when he felt that one of her student had broken the first illusion. Naruto saw Sakura appear besides their sensei, looking startled. She looked around but she didn't seem to see him. He was probably invisible for her in the second genjutsu. She sat down besides him and he wondered if she would be able to detect the other illusion. Almost ten minutes had passed since the beginning of the test.

It seemed the kunoichi were really more skilled in genjutsu than the boys because shortly after Sakura, Ino also broke the jutsu. She saw the friend/former friend/rival and also sat down, missing the second trap. During the next minutes, other students came, and Shikamaru was the first to escape from the double mirage. He didn't sit but lay down to watch the clouds.

The rest of the class arrived during the next half hour, Naruto saw that only five students were still trapped in the first genjutsu and the test was coming to its end. When Kurenaï stop her watch, he only counted 11 students, besides him, who had managed to break the two illusions.

Then the Jounin freed the last students. "The genjutsu test is over." She announced, not bothering to count the surprised exclamations which came from all sides. The Jounin gathered the class and told them their results. "Those who broke the two genjutsu: Uzumaki Naruto,... Nara Shikamaru, Yamanaka Ino, Haruno Sakura, …, Uchiha Sasuke, Aburame Shino, Hyûga Hinata, … . And those who broke one: … Akimichi Chôji, Inuzuka Kiba..." She didn't give the names of the five last ones, they seemed enough disappointed.

"You have one hour and a half of break. You're free to go out of the Academy as long as you come back in time. The taijutsu test will take place in the first gymnasium." She said before going back inside.

All the students began to walk away, some were going back home but most people had brought their lunch and went back in the classroom. Naruto wasn't really hungry but he decided to eat something downtown, his apartment was quite far from the Academy and Minato wasn't at home anyway.

He had already stood up and was going to walk away when he felt somebody pushing him. "Hey Shika! You're coming with u- Oh sorry!" Ino exclaimed when she saw she had almost made him fall. "So.. sorry, really I didn't see..." She apologize, feeling uneasy in front of those blood red eyes.

"Don't mind." He simply replied before walking toward the gates.

The kunoichi sighed in relief went he moved away, she didn't really like to face him.

"You're so clumsy, Ino-buta."

"Oh shut up, Deko-Sakura! You know I didn't do it on purpose!"

"Yeah, he saw that too." Shikamaru pointed out. "You didn't need to apologize that much."

"I know but... it's just.."

"That you're dead scared of him?" Kiba finished as he came by with Hinata and Shino.

"What? Of course not... well, maybe a little bit.." Ino reluctantly admit. "And you?! You've never talked to him either!" She replied.

"It's not like that! Me, I'm... err..."

"She.. She's right, Kiba-kun." The young Hyûga quietly added, smiling shyly.

"Hinata! I thought you were on my side!!" Kiba complained.

"Waf!"

"You too Akamaru?! I told you I'm not afraid!"

"Yeah right." A voice commented behind him. Turning round, Kiba found himself facing..

"Sasuke-kun!" The two girls cried out.

Kiba seemed ready to strangle him. "What did you say teme?!"

"I'm not going to repeat it, coward."

"What!!"

Seeing that Shikamaru and Shino didn't seem really concerned, Chôji had to stop his friend. "Calm down Kiba,..."

In front of all this excitation, the young Nara couldn't help but yawn. "Tch, mendokusai. I really don't understand why you're making such a big deal about that. Naruto's not that scary."

"Where did he go by the way? I thought he would stay here." Ino said.

"Dunno. Maybe he went to eat with he father." Shikamaru replied, shrugging.

"He has a father." Sakura asked, she wasn't the only one to be surprised.

Shikamaru raised an eyebrow. "Of course, why not?"

"Yeah, said like that..." She muttered, thinking. Indeed, it was quite normal that Naruto had parents but he was always silent and never spoke of himself so they had not thought about that. That subject caught their interest and they immediately questioned their friend. "You already met him? How is he? He has the same eyes?" Sakura, Ino and Kiba asked together.

The young Nara sighed but saw that he couldn't escape them before answering. "Yeah, I'm met him the other day after school. He doesn't look like him at all, well from outside at least. He's also a ninja. He's not very tall, he has brown hairs and... green eyes I think."

"Your ninja, does he have a scar on his forehead?"

The question surprised Shikamaru. "Hm... yeah." He said, recalling the face of the shinobi. "How do you know that?"

The others were also waiting Sasuke's answer. "They came at my house, a week ago. They said it was for a 'mission'." The young boy frowned. "But I didn't know it was his father. Besides, they didn't have the same name."

Shikamaru began to find that quite strange. This kind of mystery was one of the rare things that could motivate him. "Yeah they had, his name is Uzumaki Arashi."

"... He told me Namikaze Arashi."

The small group stayed silent for awhile. "What's his real name then?" Chôji asked.

"That's impossible to know." Shikamaru said. "Maybe the two are fake."

Hinata asked the question which was in their minds. "But.. But why would he.. hide his.. his identity?" She said slowly.

The young Genin students were only more curious now... Scratch that, they were extremely excited. It wasn't everyday that they discovered something new about the number one mysterious student of their class. "Maybe we could ask Iruka-sensei!" Ino suggested. "He should know."

"Mm... But the teachers are busy now. I don't think he'll have the time to listen to our questions." Shikamaru countered.

"Who then?"

They thought about it during a few seconds, trying to list all the people they could question immediately.

"We could follow Uzumaki, and asked him and his father." Shino said.

They glanced at him, surprised. "As if he would tell us." Kiba replied. "Besides he's not here anymore, we can only ask him after the exam."

The young Aburame didn't answer and only pointed in the direction of the Academy's gates. Turning round, they saw Naruto going out of the school.

"He's still here? I thought he was already gone."

"Maybe he forgot something and he came back in when we were not looking." Shikamaru guessed.

"Whatever, that's our chance!" Kiba shouted.

"Let's go!" Sakura added, extremely curious.

The future ninjas began to follow their comrade, hiding behind the walls and the trash cans on the way. They were quite skilled in spying, well individually at least. Being eight to follow one person brought some additional problems.

The first one was Akamaru, who wasn't exactly the most quiet of their group. Kiba had to call him back several times as the dog seemed to think it was a game.

°-°-°-°-° With Naruto °-°-°-°-°

The blond ninja was only a few steps away from the Academy when he realized he had left his jacket in the classroom. His money was in its pocket and he had to go back inside.

Once outside, he headed for the town centre but as he was walking he felt a weird presence behind him. Presence_**s**_ to be more precise. Apparently the Academy students were following him; they were doing quite well for Genin apprentices but he was still able to detect this kind of pursuers. He continued to walk as if nothing had happened while counting the chakra signature. "_One, two... … six, seven, eight, nine.. no, eight and a half._" A muffled bark confirmed the half.

Naruto could easily guess who was following him, what he didn't know was why they were doing that. Did they want to speak with him? Probably not or they would have came directly to him. They were spying on him then, but what were they trying to discover... The young ninja was pulled out of his thought when he heard his name.

"Naruto-kun!"

He saw that Uchiha Mikoto was walking toward him, waving her hand.

"Ohayo, Uchiha-san." He greeted her.

"Ohayo." She replied, smiling. "You can call me Mikoto."

He nodded. "Aren't you doing the exam?" She asked, surprised to see him in town.

"Yes, but we're allowed to go out for the lunch break."

"Oh I see. So, how did you think about the first tests?"

Naruto was not really used to discuss casually with people even if he felt quite at ease with the young woman. Somehow, it felt a bit like talking with Minato. He told her briefly about the writing exam and the genjutsu test, also talking about her son's results.

"Are you going home?" Mikoto asked him.

"No, my father got a mission so I'm going to eat down town."

She nodded. "I wanted to thank you again for accepting my request."

"It's nothing, really..." Naruto was still a bit confused by all that gratitude and didn't really know what to say. On the other side, he was half distracted by a certain group of ninjas which seemed to get closer and closer.

°-°-°-°-° Meanwhile °-°-°-°-°

"Sshh Kiba! He's going to hear us!" Ino whispered.

"It's not my fault..." He muttered, everything was against him today.

The group moved a little forward, jumping over the fences and hiding in the corner at the slightest movement of their target.

"So, what are we going to do?" Chôji asked.

"You didn't understand yet? We follow him, wait for him to fin his father and then we go and ask them." Sakura answered.

"But if he's-"

They were pulled out of their conversation by a feminine voice.

"Naruto-kun!"

Eight pairs of eyes turned to the other side of the street where the blond ninja was standing. The person who had called him was a stranger for all of them.

Kiba frowned. "Hey, but that's..."

"Kaa-san?" Sasuke whispered, not believing his eyes.

Their attention went back on their comrade next to them. "It's... it's you mother, Sasuke-kun?" Hinata said.

The young boy nodded. "She's holding bags; maybe she's doing her shopping. But why is she talking with him?" Shino asked.

"Hn, like the hell I know." He replied.

"It looks like a friendly conversation." Shikamaru muttered.

Kiba cried out, as if he had understood everything. "Ah! But maybe he..." He left his sentence unfinished.

"Maybe he what?" Ino and Sakura asked, curious.

"Maybe he likes older women!"

That reply earned him a double punch on the head.

"Baka!" Ino shouted. "Is that all you can think about!!"

"Aho! She's old enough to be his mother!" Sakura added. She heard a grunt behind her and turned round, embarrassed. "Ah hm, but... I didn't mean she was old... err, Sasuke-kun.."

Shikamaru only sighed. "You're all too loud; they're going to spot us."

"I wished I could hear what they're saying..." Chôji whispered.

"Let's go closer then." Kiba suggested.

Shikamaru opened his mouth to say something but saw they were already moving forward and Sasuke was far from being the last one. "Troublesome..." He sighed before following them.

The group stopped a few meters away from Naruto and Mikoto. Luckily, the street wasn't very noisy and they could easily the rest of their conversation.

"It's nothing really..." The young ninja said.

"No I insist. I would like to invite you for a dinner one day, you and your father. What do you think?"

"Err... yes sure, if... it's okay with you." For a strange reason, his voice sounded a bit hesitant.

"Of course it is. Give the message to Minato-san, okay?"

They saw the blond ninja nod. "But... isn't it going to be a problem?"

"You're talking about Sasuke? He's a bit stubborn but I'm sure he won't say anything." Mikoto replied, laughing.

The ninja students didn't even need to look back to know that Sasuke was silently seething with anger. "I have to go, say hello to your father for me!" The young woman finally said. Once she was gone, Naruto continue on his way.

"Wow... She's really on his father, your mom.."

Behind him, he heard a choked exclamation of surprise and as he turned back, he saw the Uchiha, even paler than usual. But he quickly returned to his normal colour before turning to an angry red shade.

"He... She... She has... Him..." He stuttered.

"ha, you sound like Hinata!" Kiba laughed, making the young girl blush.

That comment was the last straw and Sasuke finally explode. "Chikusho!! If the stupid father of that moron ever tries to flirt with my mother, I'll...! I'll...! There's no way I'll let them in our house!!"

"I have an idea, Sasuke-kun!" Sakura suddenly said.

"Hurry up, we're going to lose him!" Ino warned them. She and Sakura moved forward, quickly followed by Kiba, Sasuke and Chôji. The three others were coming behind them. Shikamaru wiped his face, sighing again.

"They never use their brains..." He muttered.

"Ano... what do you mean by that?" Hinata asked him.

Shino was the first to answer. "It's 'Minato' who bothers, isn't it?"

"Yeah, that could be another name of his father and it's maybe the real one this time. I have the feeling I already heard that name somewhere..." The young genius said, thoughtful. "But I would like to know why she want to thank them..."

"Thank them?" Hinata repeated.

"Naruto said 'it's nothing really' and Mikoto-san answered 'I insist'. That means they done something important for her, something that Sasuke has not heard about and that she appreciated so much that she want to invite them for dinner to thank them." He rolled his eyes. "But knowing Sasuke, it might more difficult that what she expects."

Shino nodded, as usual, silently admiring of his deduction skills. "Do you know what Sakura and the others are preparing?"

"Maybe.. But I hope I'm wrong."

The unlike-you-we-use-our-brain group moved a little faster to catch up with their friends.

°-°-°-°-° With Naruto °-°-°-°-°

The young ninja was still thinking about the conversation he had had with Mikoto. It was the first time he was invited for dinner, or at least, it was the first time somebody asked him to invite them. He had been a little confused by that and had tried to answer like Minato.

He almost stopped again when he felt that the other where coming closer, he had nearly forgotten them. Curiously, he saw that they had separated: one, no two had gone ahead of him, three were slightly behind him and the three others were further but they were quickly catching up the second group.

Naruto was really wondering what they were trying to do when at the corner of a street; he saw something blocking the way. The young boy frowned when he saw an enormous panel where was written: 'BUILDING SITE. GET LOST'.

He stayed there for a little bit, puzzled. He didn't know what surprised the most, the fact that a panel of this size had appear from nowhere or the words that were written on it… Moreover, he could sense a chakra signature and easily guessed that it was a Henge. Naruto understood less and less their plan. He decided to pretend he didn't saw anything and turned round.

°-°-°-°-° At the same time °-°-°-°-°

Hidden behind the bushes, Sakura, Ino and Chôji saw the blond ninja walk in the opposite direction of the panel and when he turned at the corner, they joined their friend. The panel disappear in a puff of smoke, revealing a scowling black haired boy.

"Five minutes to read two lines… Is he illiterate or what…" Sasuke muttered.

"Don't worry Sasuke-kun, at least it worked." Sakura assured him.

"You're talking seriously?" A voice behind her asked. Shikamaru and the two others joined them.

"Of course, you saw like me that he turned." The young girl replied.

"But it's so obvious he did it on purpose…" Shikamaru replied, in vain. He didn't even have the time to point out that 'Get Lost' wasn't really something that you would read on the panel. They weren't listening anymore.

"He must have found Kiba now, Hinata quick!" Sakura said, pulling the hand of the girl who had no choice but to follow her.

"Troublesome… Why did I even agree to come…"

"I didn't think he would still pretend he didn't see anything." Shino said. Shikamaru shrugged and the two boys followed again their friends.

On the other side, the five ninja student had join Kiba, aka the second panel. He had seen Naruto stop in front of him and then walk in the only street which wasn't blocked. He dispelled his Henge. "Stage two, clear." He told them.

"Hey Kiba, it's building, not bilding." Ino said, laughing.

The young boy was going to reply something but he was cut by Sakura. "Don't start now you two. Ino, Hinata, it's your turn!"

"Okay!" "Eh? Wh..What?"

Ino went besides the black haired girl and made a hand seal. "Your chakra, Hinata!" She called, not even bothering to explain her. "But…" "Your chakra!" "H.. Haï!" "Henge!"

Shikamaru and Shino arrived just in time to see the two girls perform the combined technique and when the smoke disappear, they found themselves facing a perfect copy of Uchiha Mikoto.

"How do I look Sasuke-kun?" said Ino/Hinata/Mikoto.

The young boy crossed his arms, looking away. "Hn."

"Wow, such a nice compliment…" Kiba scoffed.

"Okay, you can go now." Sakura told them. Mikoto went out of their hiding place and walk toward the blond ninja.

"No offense… but I think your plan is a little bit complicated." Shikamaru commented.

"It's not." Sakura replied. "We just change his way to make sure he goes in a street where there not too many people and far from the house of Sasuke-kun. Then, we just need to send 'Mikoto-san' to cancel the dinner."

"But why Ino and Hinata? It would have been easier to send only one of them." Chôji pointed out.

A hand on her hip, the young kunoichi explained them the rest of her plan. "Aha, that's the tricky part. Hinata is as polite and graceful as Mikoto-san but she's too shy to go alone so she needs Ino. You're still with me? But Ino has.. hm, a strong character so she needs Hinata to show a good act or it will not look like the true Mikoto-san." She finished in a proud voice.

Shikamaru rolled his eyes. "Yeah, so I was right… It's complicated…"

His lack of enthusiasms was beginning to annoy Sakura. "It's going to work, you'll see!" She said before turning round to watch the scene.

°-°-°-°-° The scene then °-°-°-°-°

Naruto had turned again after seeing another panel, as strange as the first one; the words were not even spelled correctly. He had walked for one minute or two when he heard somebody call him. Again.

"Naruto-kun!"

He knew that voice. "Mikoto-san?" The young boy didn't have to pretend he was surprised, he really didn't know what it meant. "_Another Henge… combined jutsu… Just what are they trying to do…_"

"Oh I am so sorry but I have to take back my invitation." The young woman suddenly said in a strange tone.

Naruto slowly nodded, now he was beginning to understand their goal a little bit more. Their idea didn't really bother him as long as the real Mikoto was aware of it, but he doubt that it was the case here.

"Okay…" He answered. "But my father will probably be disappointed; he would have liked to talk with you."

That was true, he knew that Minato like to discuss with Mikoto but just like he like to talk and joke with Kakashi or Tsunade. As expect, it confused the two ninja students but what he didn't knew was that the romantic heart of Ino had misunderstood that.

"_Ino-san, we have to answer._" Hinata said/thought.

"_I know, I know… But what can I say? Mikoto-san seems to appreciate his father, that's not really fair…_"

"_Then we have to tell him it's okay._"

"_No! I told Sasuke-kun I would do it… But still…_"

Ino was facing a terrible dilemma and was still thinking when the blond shinobi called her. "Mikoto-san?"

"Ah! Hm, what?"

"Are you all right?"

"Yeah, yeah, I'm okay." Ino bite her lip, unable to continue that little game. "Err… I'm going to cancel… the cancellation…"

That sudden change of heart surprised Naruto but that was what he had hoped. Now, he only needed to make them abandon their disguise. "I understand. Then I will tell him to bring the rest of the files next time." If the small group had heard that Mikoto wanted to thank them, let them think that their business was not finished. And since Sasuke was here, he could continue with the story of the papers.

"The… the files?" She said, hesitant.

"Of course, Godaime-sama did tell you that they contained S-ranked information and you had to keep them safe. If somebody else ever learns that, it could create serious problems…"

"_Not good, not good, not good…What are we going to do? Mikoto-san will have problems…_" Ino was pretty worried now.

"_We should go now…_" Hinata suggested, as anxious as her friend.

"Yeah, of course, the files. Hm... Bring them, no problem! Have to go, see ya!" Mikoto said quickly.

"Goodbye." Naruto replied, observing the young woman running away. They had not really abandoned but at least, they wouldn't come back after that and he walked away.

°-°-°-°-° Behind the fence °-°-°-°-°

The small group had listened to their conversation, Sakura and Sasuke becoming more and more upset as their plan was going down. They saw Mikoto come and disappear in a cloud of smoke, revealing two very embarrassed kunoichi.

"What have you done?!" Sakura cried out. "You ruined everything!"

"Go.. gomenasai." Hinata said.

"Sorry but… really, I couldn't do it!" Ino protested.

"You couldn't do it?? It wasn't that difficult!"

"So why didn't you do it yourself!"

Sakura wiped her face, everything had been so well prepared and she hated to fail like that. Sasuke was still muttering in a corner, wondering how he could persuade his mother to cancel that invitation.

"Just forget it." Shikamaru said.

Unfortunately, those few words had the contrary effect. The pink haired kunoichi raised the head and clenched her fists. "No way! There's still the plan B!"

"_Plan B…_" The ninja students all thought.

"Chôji, your turn!" She said suddenly, turning to the young boy who almost choked on his chips.

"Wh.. What?"

Sakura didn't let him protest and immediately pushed him out of their shelter. He was now in the middle of the street, in sight of Naruto. "Transform into the Hokage and go sort out the problem."

"Into who?"

"He said that the orders came from the Hokage, transform and settle everything."

"But…"

"Hurry!!"

Their target had turned in another street and they might lose him. Seeing he couldn't refuse, Chôji resigned himself. "Okay, okay, I'll go." He followed Naruto and used his Henge just before passing the corner.

Behind, the young students saw something strange. Kiba pointed at their friend. "Hey, but that's…"

"He didn't take the good one…" Sakura complained.

°-°-°-°-° Just guess where °-°-°-°-°

Naruto thought he had finished with them now, but just at this moment he felt somebody coming at him. He closed his eyes for a second before turning round.

What he saw almost left him speechless. "Sa..Sandaime-sama?"

In a hurry, Chôji had transformed into Sarutobi. Since the day he was born, he had only known the old man as the Hokage and even if Godaime was here now, he had unconsciously made the mistake.

On the other side, Naruto was now totally lost. What were they thinking… First, they followed him as if he had a red target painted in the back, then they transformed into Mikoto which had been useless and now that… What did it have to do with everything else… And if they wanted to train, they should pay a little bit more attention.

Because really, Sandaime with a bag of chips in the hand…??

"Ah Uzu.. Hm, Naruto-kun… I wanted to talk with you." Chôji/Sarutobi said.

"I am listening."

"Well… Hm, hm. How should I say that…"

While Sandaime was thinking about the best way to get out of this mess, Naruto caught a swift movement behind the Hokage. Looking more closely, he realized it was a square box with… eyes? The strange thing was slowly approaching and when it arrived near Chôji, who had not seen it, somebody suddenly came out of the box.

Naruto saw a kid run to the Hokage screaming "Got ya Jiji !!" before stumbling on his long scarf and clumsily fall on the ground in front of them. He lift the head, whimpering while the blond shinobi turned to Sandaime who seemed totally confused.

"Who is it?"

"Err…"

Chôji was saved by the brat's intervention, who spoke to Naruto.

"Ha! You stopped me this time but I'll never be trapped again!!"

"I didn't do anything." The former Anbu replied.

"You can't lie to me! I'm Konohamaru, future Hokage of this village!"

Konohamaru? Naruto had the feeling he had already heard this name. He tried to remember while talking. "And you really think that attacking the former Hokage is a good idea?"

Still sitting on the ground, the brat crossed his arms, pouting. "No, first I tried with that old hag, but…" The two ninjas caught sight of the big bump at the back of this head. Apparently, he had already visited in the office of Tsunade and brought back a souvenir. Naruto remembered now, he had often heard Sarutobi talk about a child who was also attacking him and saw that it was a good time to escape.

"I have to go." He said to the Hokage. "I will leave you with your grandson Sandaime-sama." He didn't bother to wait for the answer and he jumped on the nearest roof.

"So cool…" Konohamaru whispered, impressed.

"No wait!" The Hokage shouted in vain. Seeing the blond ninja was already far away, Chôji sighed deeply and dispelled his jutsu. The brat turned round at the sound of a little explosion.

"Aaaaahhh!! Jiji! … … Eh, who're you?" He saw a small group of ninja join the brown haired boy.

"Pff, well done Chôji." Kiba said.

Sakura sighed. "Back to the beginning…"

"Hey I know you!" Konohamaru exclaimed, catching their attention. "You're studying at the Academy!"

"How do you know that?" Ino asked.

The brat seemed a bit embarrassed. "Err… Sometimes I go there.. I'm not spying, not at all, but…" Seeing the sarcastic smiles of the elder students, he changed the subject. "My sensei told me it was the Genin exam today? You're not doing it?" In half a second, he saw horrified expressions appear on their faces.

"Exam!!" Kiba cried out.

"How much time left??" A stressed Sakura asked in a high-pitched voice.

Shino looked at his watch, absolutely calm. "9 minutes 45 seconds and 32-"

"WHAT??"

Sakura and Ino were the first ones to leave, quickly followed by Chôji, Sasuke, Kiba and Hinata. "I'm going first." The young Aburame said to his friend and walked peacefully toward the Academy.

A short silence followed their departure. "And you, you're not going?" Konohamaru asked, a little surprised to see that one of them wasn't moving at all, just looking at the sky.

He didn't get the time to hear a response as he was found by his sensei. "Young master! What are you doing here?" Konohamaru scowled but didn't manage to escape from him. "Shall we continue our training?" The Jounin with glasses said, dragging his rebellious student.

Shikamaru had not moved a single finger. Had he been lying down, eyes closed, it would have looked as if he was sleeping.

At this moment, he sensed somebody besides him and he wasn't surprised to see Naruto land next to him. "I thought you'd still be hanging around." He said, smirking.

The blond ninja nodded and the two boys began to walk together. "What was that?" Naruto asked and Shikamaru understood he was speaking about the big mess they had made during the whole break.

"That was so troublesome…" He sighed, guessing he owned him some explanations. "When Ino shoved you by accident, we start talking about you and, don't ask me how we got there, your father. We thought you were going to eat with him so we followed you to see him. And then you met Sasuke's mother, and he didn't like that, and they tried to cancel the invitation, and you know the end of the story."

He let the young ninja think about that for a few seconds. "Well, in the end it was totally useless and it looked more like a prank than a real plan."

"A prank…" The blond shinobi repeated, thoughtful. Shikamaru was walking besides him so he didn't see the violet tint which enlightened his red eyes and didn't hear the voice which echoed in his mind. Naruto frowned, he didn't understood what it was and he should really tell Minato about that. The sooner would be the better.

They took a shortcut and quickly arrived at the Academy. There was only one minute left before the beginning of the test and they didn't waste more time to join their class in the first gymnasium. They saw the small group finishing their lunch at top speed. Naruto heard a weird rumbling sound and turned to Shikamaru. "You didn't eat." Naruto noticed.

The young Nara shrugged. "I try to pass in the last group and grab a bite before that. You?"

"I'll be okay."

The school bell rang once more and the students saw Iruka and two other sensei come in. "The taijutsu test will now begin." The Chûnin announced. "I hope you ate well because this exam might shake you a little bit. You will fight against one of those teachers who will evaluate during the spar." The two shinobi took place in the different arenas. "A volunteer to go first?" He asked although every year very few students wanted to begin. If there was nobody, he would call them himself.

Naruto glanced at the small group who had followed him for almost an hour and a half. Skip a meal didn't really affected him but it seemed that they had eaten a little bit too fast and weren't in great shape. Especially Shikamaru who wasn't particularly energetic. He remembered what he had told him and how their little plot had turned into a prank. Ten or twenty minutes should be enough for them to recover and raised the hand.

Iruka wasn't the only one surprised by that, usually Naruto did this kind of things. "Yes Naruto. You can go on the first arena."

The blond ninja joined the teacher, a young Chûnin apparently. "Hi, I'm Mosashima Toshiki (1)." He said.

"Uzumaki Naruto."

"Good, let's start."

The two shinobi took a fighting stance and the examiner let his student make the first move. Naruto dashed forward and threw a punch, which was unsurprisingly blocked, before aiming for his head. During the next ten minutes, they continued their spar. Naruto tried to be careful to not exceed the level of Genin. They had turned round and he was facing the rest of the class and from what he could see, the eight spies were still waiting their turn and were attentively observing his fight.

Naruto let the Chûnin hit him one or two time and did more or less the same, reducing the force of his blows. "Okay, it's enough." Toshiki finally said. The blond ninja nodded and walked to the back of the gymnasium while the examiner was calling another student. He was sitting not far from the other ninjas and saw that a few of them were giving him curious and almost admiring looks.

The rest of the test went on normally, the eight students passed with the last ones and Naruto thought that it went pretty well for them. Kiba and Chôji had encountered some problems in genjutsu but they seemed to catch up here. When the last student finished his fight, Iruka gathered them again. "You can go back in your classroom now. I will come in ten minutes for the ninjutsu test."

The ninja students went out of the gymnasium and headed for the Academy. But as he passed the door, Naruto felt a strange presence far ahead of him. Exactly like the one he had sensed when he came back in Konoha. But he didn't get enough time to trail it because it immediately disappeared. The young ninja was still uncertain about that so he decided to keep silent but was careful as he entered the building.

The corridors were very crowded; they weren't the only ones to pass the exam today that had disrupted the usual rhythm of the school. The student arrived in front their classroom's door when a sensei came out. "Sorry, there was a last minute change. You have to wait in the room 310 at the third floor."

The class walked back to the stairs and entered the room, sitting where they could while waiting for the call of their sensei. Naruto went to the back of the classroom, next to the opened window, as usual. Shikamaru and Chôji sat on the chairs in front of him. The young Nara yawned and his head heavily fell on the table.

"You're not going to sleep again Shika?" Chôji said. "I won't wake you up this time." He warned him, joking.

"Relax, I've a good name. Nara is surely not the first one." He closed his eyes. "And besides, I know you'll wake me up 'cause you want us to pass all together."

Chôji noticed that Naruto was listening and he glanced at him and shrugged, smiling. A few minutes later, their Sensei opened the door and asked for silence. "I will call you one by one." He said. "You will be evaluated by me and another examiner. Your written tests are already marked and at the end, you will be given the results of the other tests. Si you succeed, you will receive your official hitai-ate."

After that last remark, joyful and excited whispers came from all sides and Iruka couldn't help but smile at their enthusiasm. "If you don't have any questions, we will begin now. Akimichi Chôji."

Naruto saw the young boy stand up, looking a bit worried, and follow their Sensei out of the room. The conversations started again as soon as the door was closed, betraying their excitement. The first one was always the most awaited and luckily for them, it didn't last too long. All the heads turned round when they heard the door open.

A grinning Chôji entered, wearing the hitai-ate of Konoha. He was greeted by several congratulations and some of the students applauded. "Nice job, Chôji." Kiba said.

"Calm down now." Their sensei told them, although he was also happy for him. "Don't make to much noise or I won't allow you to come back in class after the test." He warned them kindly before calling the next student. "Aburame Shino."

The young ninja stood up while Chôji went at the back of the classroom. He took out another bag of chips, unable to stop himself from grinning like a madman. "I really thought I missed it because of the genjutsu… But in the end, I passed." He said, relieved

Shikamaru didn't even look up and the new Genin barely heard him spoke. "Yeah, so troublesome…" he muttered. If the girls were the only ones who could understand Sasuke, Chôji was the only one who understood that his friend was congratulating him. Well, kind of. Behind them, Naruto was still a bit confused but he didn't say anything.

A few students had already passed now and almost all of them had came back with a hitai-ate. Kiba, who had finished only awhile ago, had been the loudest. Their sensei had gone with another student and Naruto was next. He wasn't very concentrated, absent-mindedly thinking about this Rasengan but right at this moment he saw something moving quickly outside.

He realized it was a ninja who had just went out of the Academy at top speed. Naruto easily recognized his grey hair and his Chûnin jacket, they belonged to Mizuki. It was the second time he saw him there but today the shinobi wasn't only passing by, in fact it looked like he was running away. Naruto almost let him go, believing he was only thinking too much but he caught sight of the objet Mizuki was holding.

It was a big scroll and the Chûnin was taking it just as if he had stolen it. The young ninja thought that something wasn't right there but in the same time, he didn't have any proof and it could be something else. For a very short moment, he was torn between two choices. He had only one second to make up his mind. All the Academy shinobis were far to busy to listen to him and besides he wasn't sure if they would believe him.

His instinct told him to follow Mizuki to check that but if he took too much time, he would surely miss the official exam and would have to stay in the Academy for another half a year. But above all, he would have the feeling that he had wasted the chance that Minato had offered him.

"_Well, at least I don't have to worry about the results_."

"_...'cause you want us to pass all together._"

And Mizuki was quickly running away…

"_We'll celebrate that when I come back._"

Naruto had to make a choice.

Shortly after, Iruka came back in the room and while the newly promoted Genin joined his classmates, he called the next examinee.

"Uzumaki Naruto." He said, searching of the blond head of his student. But the chair of the last row was empty. "Naruto?" All the ninjas were now looking around, surprised. "Did you saw him? Where did he go?" he asked his students.

Unfortunately, he only received negative answers and shrugs. Nobody had seen the former Anbu jumping out of the window to chase a certain Chûnin.

°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°

Naruto was following Mizuki and made sure to keep a security distance between them. The shinobi didn't seem to sense his presence yet and was running in the forest of Konoha. They were now quite far from the Academy and the village but the shinobi didn't slow down. During all this time, the blond ninja had left some evident signs to show the way if somebody eventually noticed the problem. He had also left a note but doubted that anybody would take him seriously.

After more than half an hour, Mizuki finally seemed to reduce his speed and stopped in a large clearing. The young ninja hid behind a tree, waiting for him to move. The Chûnin was observing his surroundings with a suspicious look and Naruto hid even more his chakra signature, just in case. Apparently his target had arrived to a meeting point and was waiting for somebody.

Mizuki seemed to relax a bit, believing he was alone and put down the scroll. Naruto recognized it now; it was the scroll which contained the Forbidden Techniques. The Chûnin would be considered as a traitor if he had really stolen it and Naruto had to know what he had planned to do with it. He waited like this for a long time and the forest was becoming darker as afternoon ended.

It was almost night when he sensed another chakra signature which was quickly coming nearer. The Chûnin turned the head and didn't seem surprise to see another ninja arrive in the clearing. It was a bit dark but Naruto could still make out the silhouette of a large and stocky man who had his hair tied samurai style.

"Oh.. You've got the scroll Mizuki." The big shinobi said. "That's the first time you succeeded a mission." He laughed.

"Shut the fuck up Fujin. We have to put it in a safe place." Mizuki replied.

The shinobi, Fujin then, didn't look very worried and a idiotic smile appeared on his face. "Yeah, besides I'm hungry. You know where's the North hideout?" The Chûnin nodded. "I'll go with you and Orochimaru-sama will join us there."

"_Orochimaru…_" So Mizuki was working for the traitor Sannin… He couldn't let him go away now. Naruto took a small storage scroll out of his pouch and silently summoned his katana. With the other hand, he took his three branched kunaï and in a swift and precise gesture, he threw it toward the ninjas.

They sensed the attack coming and despite their surprise, they easily dodged it. Naruto took advantage of this time to perform his technique and in a flash; he appeared in the centre of the clearing.

"What the-"

The blond ninja didn't leave them the time to pull themselves together, he concentrated his chakra in his legs and threw a powerful kick which stroked Mizuki in the chest and sent him flying a few meters away. The Chûnin violently hit a tree and fell on the ground, almost knocked out. Naruto immediately turned toward his second enemy and griped his katana tighter. "Konoha Ryû: Shayô no Maï." (2) The sunset in his back, Naruto run faster and faster, giving his opponent the impression he was creating clones. Using his confusion, he snuck behind him and attacked.

But the shinobi and more or less sensed him and even if he didn't dodge totally the blow, he moved far enough to reduce the damages. A dumbstruck look appeared on his face when he caught sight of his enemy. "A brat..??" Naruto didn't waste his time to reply; he jumped above the ninja and moved backward. Then he sent again his chakra into his legs and his katana. "Kaze Tsurugi no Jutsu." (3)

Once more, he dashed toward the shinobi and made a double attack which left two deep bleeding cuts on his stomach. Unfortunately, he was really tougher than what he had expected and Naruto, destabilized one second by the sudden use of chakra barely managed to block the blow of Fujin. The shinobi had used both of his arms, like a hammer, and his metallic wristbands created sparkled went they hit the katana.

Naruto was beginning to bend in front of his monstrous strength. He concentrated his chakra into his arms and managed to push him back a little. But it was enough and without any warning, he moved back and dropped his katana which broke under the pressure. The shinobi lost his balance and he almost fell on the ground. Naruto took advantage of this to pick up his kunaï. Half a second later, he was behind Fujin and threw two other kunaï, aiming for his neck and more particularly the carotids.

Fujin let out a loud growl of pain as the weapons cut into his skin and he put a hand over his neck, stumbling forward. Naruto performed the Hiraishin once more and appeared in front of him. He had to do it quickly because he felt Mizuki waking up. With a swift move, he took out a new kunaï, longer than the others and plunged it in his heart, right on the wounds he had already inflicted him.

The shinobi finally gave up after that attack. His body was shaken by a last spasm and he fell heavily on the ground. Naruto couldn't have knocked him out long enough if even his Kaze Tsurugi wasn't working. Besides he only needed one person for the interrogation.

At this moment, Naruto sensed something behind him and quickly dodge the giant shuriken that Mizuki had just thrown. The weapon cut through a trunk and landed a few meters away. Naruto turned to the Chûnin whose voice betrayed his confusion and his anger.

"Kuso gaki! What the hell are you dong here?!" He yelled. "How did you follow me?!"

"You were walking under my window." The young ninja simply replied.

"What?? But Iruka told you to wait in your classroom, that's at the other side of the Academy! I heard him!"

"It was you who spied on us after the test." Naruto realized. He also remembered the incident that had occurred a few months ago. "And at the gates of Konoha… It was you again."

The Chûnin looked dumbfound by that but a mocking smirk quickly appeared on his face. "So you had already caught me. Tch, I should have been more careful… Yeah, it was me; I was watching you since you left Konoha, Orochimaru's orders. Too bad his plan failed, even if your dear Yondaime wasn't there."

Naruto frowned, trying to decipher his words. Orochimaru had tried something when they had left Konoha? But nothing had happened except… except the intrusion of the Kumo nins with a shinobi from Oto. Of course.. Minato himself had told him he found it strange that they had attacked just when he, Kakashi and Naruto were out of the village.

"Orochimaru tried to kidnap the heirs of the Uchiha and the Hyûga clan…" He said slowly. "You were working for him from that time."

"Hn, even before that." Luckily, the Chûnin was quite arrogant and Naruto saw that he didn't need to force him much to make him speak. "The snake wanted to know if Yondaime was really alive and if it wasn't only a clone." He was now wearing a disgusted expression. "For months, I had to pretend I was afraid of that pathetic loser and to obey the old Godaime. That bitch made me clean all the libraries in the Tower just because I was the 'annoying newbie'." He spat.

Mizuki seemed to be brooding on his own revenges but that was not what Naruto wanted to know. Even if he didn't like it, he let go the insults on the Hokages, for now at least. "You resigned from the school to work at the Tower…"

The Chûnin put a hand on the scroll. "Exactly, I heard it was hidden there. Bad luck… I learnt they moved in permanently and that now-"

"It was hidden in the Academy…" Naruto finished.

"The little demon learns quickly." He said in an ironic voice.

"And you came five days ago to check on its location." The blond ninja continued, remembering the day he had seen him during the Kawarimi training.

Mizuki seemed a bit startled; he didn't think the blond ninja would have noticed that too. But he quickly pulled himself together. "And what better time to steal than the exam day, when everybody is busy?"

"I guess Orochimaru promised you a reward for that?"

Avidity filled the dark eyes of the shinobi. "He'll give me an incredible power and with it, I will take my revenge on that damned village."

Naruto had heard enough and he took a fighting stance. "You will not have the time to give him the scroll." He glanced at the body of Fujin behind him. "And I don't think you will be a real problem after him." He said as Mizuki took his other giant shuriken.

"Don't be mistaken, that moron was only a walking stomach." The Chûnin said before dashing forward. He threw his weapon with force, aiming for Naruto.

The young ninja easily dodged it and faced again his enemy. "Too bad…" Mizuki smirked, moving his arms backwards. Naruto heard again the shuriken fly behind him and managed to catch a silver reflection which came from the Chûnin's hands. Threads of course. Luckily, he still had his three branched kunaï in hand and he threw it forward. He landed near Mizuki and further from the shuriken and had just enough time to take back his weapon and cut the threads.

The shuriken suddenly slowed down and its trajectory turned toward the ground, allowing Naruto to catch it and throw it back to Mizuki. The Chûnin barely dodged it and swore when he felt a deep cut on his arms. He took a few steps backwards and found himself against a tree. He glared hatefully at the young boy. "Kuso, we could have gotten rid of that demon in Kaze…"

Naruto understood he was speaking about the ninja who had attacked him with poisoned senbons but that memory made him realized something else. "You were the one who told Orochimaru we left to look for Godaime…"

"Of course." Mizuki retorted.

Naruto's eyes became cold and hard as he glared at him. It was his fault… If they had been ambushed and if the Oto nin had almost got Yondaime it was entirely his fault! The image of Minato, threatened by the deadly senbons appeared clearly in his mind.

"What? You're giving up?" The Chûnin mocked, not realizing he was playing with fire.

The young ninja held his right hand in front of him and gathered his chakra, his gaze focused in the ball of energy. The orb was slowly growing and this time, it was perfectly stable. Its blue gleam was enlightening the clearing in the dark night and when Naruto raised the head, it made his blood red eyes shine.

"You betrayed Konoha. You insulted Yondaime and Godaime." He said in a cold voice which became even more intense when he spoke the last words. "And you put in danger the life of my father."

If Mizuki had been astounded by this technique, he stayed totally petrified when he saw the final result. From the dark silhouette standing in front of him, he could only see those crimson eyes who could have belong to the Kyûbi himself and the turquoise glow that surrounded the ninja gave him an ethereal aspect. Unable to move, he couldn't dodge the blow.

"Rasengan!"

Naruto attacked at full power and the whirling orb hit his enemy, it created an enormous blast wave. Mizuki felt all the air leave his lungs and the pressure applied on his chest was so great that he went trough the tree he was leaning on. The Chûnin was throw several meters away, only stopped by a huge rock. He had already passed out before touching the ground.

The ninja breathed heavily after that last attack, he had just used several techniques which required quite a lot of chakra and besides, it was the first time he managed to create a Rasengan without making it explode. He had not kill Mizuki, knowing that the Chûnin would have surely preferred to die than face the tribunal and be condemned by the village.

After one or two minutes of break, he walked to the scroll and as he picked it up, he noticed that it had been slightly opened during their fight. The young ninja inadvertently read the first lines. "_Kage Bunshin no Jutsu…_"

He knew this technique, even if he wasn't able to perform it yet. In fact, he should have mastered it a long time ago but his first sensei, an old veteran, had wanted to wait so that he could mature a little more and increase his chakra reserves. But then, he had retired before teaching him the jutsu.

His successor had planned to show him that quickly but he had come across a few problems during a solo mission. To be more precise, he had returned in more than one piece.

His next teacher had held a strong grudge against the fox demon and had done everything he could to prevent anybody from teaching him anything. He had been thanked by the Council when they had heard of it, a few months later.

The following instructor had wished to focus on genjutsu, forgetting the rest. Considering the lack of affinity of Naruto in this field, let just say that it had not been a rewarding period. He had also been dismissed in the same way as his predecessor.

His substitute had seemed ready to teach him. He was young, came back from all his missions, didn't hate him that much, didn't neglect ninjutsu and Minato had came back at this moment and he had totally forgotten this jutsu.

Well, it was now or never. Maybe he wasn't supposed to learn it directly from the Forbidden Techniques Scroll but after all, he should have already known this jutsus by now and besides, it seemed that nobody would come for awhile. He began to unroll it.

°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°

In fact, Naruto wasn't totally right when he thought that nobody was coming. Back in the Academy, Iruka had rather quickly understood that something was wrong and after several conversations with the other teachers, he had finally managed to persuade one of them to replace him. But with that entire exam thing, he had wasted a lot of time when he began to search for Naruto and found his message.

The Chûnin had followed the indications and had found himself somewhere in the forest. There, he had tried to follow the signs but they had become rarer and in the end, he had lost his trail. The forest was huge and as he had no idea of where his student could be, he had been obliged to go back to the village to ask for help.

Iruka had managed to see Godaime and once he had explained the problem, she had asked Sarutobi to come with his crystal ball as fast as possible. They had look inside just in time to see Naruto use the Rasengan against Mizuki. They had immediately summoned a special unit to search for him, missing the improvised training of the young ninja.

Godaime had also sent some ninja to investigate on Mizuki and others to check the now empty box where the scroll should have been. When they had return to the crystal ball, they had been relived to see that Naruto had just met the searching team. Now, Sandaime and Iruka were in the Hokage's office, waiting for their young student.

They heard somebody knock on the door. "Come in." Sarutobi said.

The two shinobi smiled when the blond ninja came in, apparently unharmed and in great shape. "Ah Naruto, we were expecting you. Come here." The boy walked in and Sandaime noticed he was surprised to see only him and Iruka. "Tsunade had to take care of some problem in the office where the missions are received. I'm replacing her for awhile." He said, sitting in his chair. "But first, I have to thank you for what you have done. You allowed us to stop a traitor and save the Scroll from falling in the hands of Orochimaru." He declared in a proud voice. "Could you explain me what happened exactly, from the beginning?"

Naruto complied and he told him the whole story, starting from the moment he had seen Mizuki until the fight in the forest. Sandaime nodded slowly at the end of his report. "We are going to send some ninjas at this North base but I doubt Orochimaru will get caught so easily." The former Hokage stood up, exhaling a cloud of smoke. "In the end, you handled everything very well alone but I think you can thank Iruka. He was worried for you and alerted us."

Naruto turned to the Chûnin, slightly surprise to see that somebody had indeed noticed the problem. He thanked him but felt a little bad for leaving him like that although he was one of the teachers who supported him the most. "I'm sorry.. I left in the middle in the exam…"

"You don't need to apologize." Iruka reassured him.

"Speaking of the exam… I think you still have a test to do." Sandaime said, sending a conniving glance to the Chûnin who nodded.

Naruto didn't really follow them. "But…"

"You have more than deserved a second chance." Sarutobi told him. "Meanwhile, I'm going to see if I can find Tsunade." He said before leaving the office.

On the other side, Iruka had crossed his arms, back in the role of examiner. "You passed the three first tests with excellent results, the best in fact. For the ninjutsu, I will ask you to perform the three basic Academy jutsus."

That was more a formality than a real test and Naruto did the three techniques, one after the other. He transformed into Sarutobi with a Henge, exchange places with a chair for the Kawarimi and used the Bunshin no Jutsu to create a few clones.

Iruka gave him an appraising smile. "Uzumaki Naruto, I'm glad to inform you that you passed the Genin." He realized he had no headband to give him but then, he got a better idea. "Close your eyes."

Naruto seemed a bit startled but quickly complied and a few seconds later, he felt something on his forehead. "You can't look now." He heard. "Congratulations." The young boy opened his eyes and realized Iruka had just given him his own hitai-ate.

"But… I can't take this one…" He protested.

"Of course you can." The Chûnin replied. "Just keep it. It's not every day one of my student skip the exam to chase ninja on the loose."

Naruto appreciated the gift and thanked him again. He had never really taken care of the first headband he had officially received but this one came from somebody who seemed to care truly for him, it was totally different.

Shortly after, the door opened again and their Hokage walked in. "So, what's going on, brat? Skipping class to go for a walk in the forest?" She said on a playful tone. "Even to become a Genin it had to be such a mess…" She sighed. "Well, good thing you were here."

Tsunade caught sight of the hitai-ate and smile when she saw the bare forehead of the Chûnin. That teacher was a real treasure; she would have to think about a pay rise. "I received your report." She continued. "But all that paperwork can wait, right now; I have a surprise for you."

The Sannin didn't let him reply and dragged him to the door, inviting Iruka to join them on the way. The trio went out of the Tower and Godaime guided them in the streets. It was already pretty late and a few minutes later, Naruto saw that they had arrived in front of a small restaurant. He had just the time to read 'Ramen' before being pulled inside by Tsunade.

Two persons were sitting there, chatting. There was Shizune and…

"Otou-san?" Naruto said, surprised.

His father gave him a warm smile and told him sit at his right. Tsunade took a chair next to the young boy while Iruka sat besides the brown haired kunoichi.

"I thought you had a mission." Naruto said.

"As you say, I _had_ one." Minato replied, glancing at the Sannin. "But in fact, that mission wasn't planned for today but for the next week. It's a good thing Shizune checked the schedule and send us a bird. Or we could have waited the client for a long time…" He said mockingly.

"Oh shut up." Tsunade retorted. "Everybody makes mistakes, you're here now so where's the problem?"

Yondaime just shrugged, still smirking. Then he turned to his son, kindly ruffling his hair. "Congratulations, I see you got your hitai-ate." He was really glad to be here tonight.

"I wasn't easy." Iruka joked.

Minato had heard about the incident from Shizune but didn't know all the details. Before asking him the story, he turned to the cook. "Teuchi, serve us your special recipe."

"All right." The chef replied.

Naruto realized that his father had kept his real appearance in front of them and was going to question Minato when he explained him. "Teuchi and his daughter Ayame are old friends." The young cook waved at him. "Your mother loved Ramen, she came here almost everyday." He said, laughing at this memory. "So, tell me what happened with Mizuki."

For the second time in a few hours, Naruto related him the events of the day. But he didn't mind, Minato was always eager to listen to him and besides, he had good news.

"… … So I used the Rasengan and he couldn't dodge it."

"You mastered the Rasengan?" Minato exclaimed, absolutely delighted.

The other shinobi were also impressed, it was the first time a ninja so young managed to perform perfectly that technique. Tsunade seemed particularly proud of him; she had often watched the training of her former team mate and knew it was a very powerful jutsu. "What an amazing brat…" She said quietly.

Shizune looked a bit surprised by those words. "Tsunade-sama?" The others also turned to the Hokage, wondering why she was taking her necklace off. "I've got something for you, gaki." She said, offering him the crystal pendent.

"Tsunade, are you sure it's okay for you?" Minato asked, knowing how much the Sannin cared for that jewel.

"Certain." She assured, putting it around his neck. "It looks nice on you." She added, smiling. The necklace had always appeared like a curse since the death of Nawaki and Dan but if somebody could break it, it was Naruto. By giving him the pendent, she was entrusting him with their dream, waiting for the boy to find his own.

Seeing that he was going to protest, Tsunade anticipated. "Don't even try to take it off?" She warned him. "Consider that as a reward for earning your new headband and mastering the Rasengan."

Naruto held the crystal in his palm. That was truly a valuable jewel and he understood it meant a lot for the Sannin. He wasn't really used to receive presents and this one was incredible.

"Thank you." He said simply.

After that, Teuchi served them the ramen and as they started eating, Yondaime asked him how had been the exam. Naruto remembered the little plot of the eight Genin, their prank as Shikamaru said. And that reminded him he had something to tell his father. But what was it… Naruto knew it was an important thing but right now, he couldn't remember it at all.

"You're okay?" Minato asked when he saw his son frown.

"I wanted to tell you something…" The young boy said, feeling this memory going further and further.

Yondaime let him think for awhile. "You'll tell later when you remember." He suggested.

Naruto nodded and dropped that subject for now. He told them everything that had happened during the lunch break and the adults couldn't help but burst out laughing at the story of the fake panels as well as the teenager-like Mikoto and the chips-eater Sandaime.

It was already quite late and in the middle of the dark village, the Ramen restaurant was lighting up the street while their laughs reached a sky full of stars.

TBC…

* * *

(1) Anagram, guess whose name it is^^

(2) Konoha Ryû, Shayô no Maï: Konoha style, Dance under the Sunset (created from Hayate's Dance under the Moon)

(3) Kaze Tsurugi: Wind Blade

So, how was it?  
You might be confused, but I assure you it's not going to be a Minato/Mikoto. well, our newely promoted Genins don't know that though^^

For the next chap, I'll try...  
No forget it. If I give myself a deadline I know I won't respect it. Just give me one, it'll be easier!

See ya!


	10. Chap 9: New Genin, Former Anbu, Teamwork

Rejoice, english speakers! You finally caught up with the French version!!

Thanks to all of you who read and reviewed, it always makes me so happy^^

Well, to answer a few reviews and questions:  
I do use the Google translator but just word a few words, the result of full sentence is often weird and dosen't make any sense.

as for the Minato/Mikoto problem...  
I don't know anymore.. some of you want the pairing, others don't, there's also my french readers who have different points of view... and I want to please everybody.. hmm, what should I do... a vote? a categorical decision? play heads or tails? -_-

oh, whatever.. I'll think about it when the time comes^^

for now, enjoy the chapter!

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto, Masashi Kishimoto does.

* * *

_Forgotten Prisoner_

_Chapter 9: New Genin, Former Anbu and Teamwork_

The day after the Genin exam was always a difficult morning for the newely promoted young students. Many parents had to urge and then lecture their children to wake them up. But as they were quite impatient to know their team, they often got out of bed with good grace.

The teens were not the only ones to find the waking difficult. In the room of a certain appartement in the West district, the alarm clock was ringing for the fifth time when somedoby finally managed to stop it.

"Tch... It's the last time I'm doing this kind of fight with Tsunade..." Minato muttered, coming out of his bed.

He let out a tired yawn and walked toward the bathroom, putting a hand on his forehead. Since the party of last night, he had an awful headache. A battle of sake, really... Who had got that stupid idea?

His miroir showed him a tired man who had missed several hours of sleep. "_Oh yeah... it's me..."_

He sighed, closing his eyes. Tsunade had laughed of his lack of resistance against alcohol, exactly like when he was younger. After hearing ten minutes of 'You should go to sleep, baby Mina-chan. It's late, kids should already be in their bed at this time..', he had snapped and challenged her. Such a stupid challenge... him and Tsunade had ended up dead-drunk on the table.

Well, under the table in his case. And because of that, he had not seen the Sannin give his son some sake. Minato couldn't help but laugh at this memory, apparently Naruto held alcohol as well as him... meaning he had almost been knocked out by one sip.

Good thing Shizune and Iruka were there. They had been obliged to bring two drunk Hokages and former Anbu half asleep back in their homes.

Yondaime had closed his eyes for quite a while because when he came out of the bathroom, he realized he wasn't that early. It was quarter to eight and he and Naruto had to be in their office/classroom at... eight. Knowing the habits of his son, he thought he would already be wide awake but as he entenred in the kitchen, he was surprised to see it was completely empty.

"Naruto!" He shouted in the stairs. "Wake up, it's already quarter to eight!"

A few seconds later, loud sounds of steps confirmed him that the young ninja was out of his bed and he also went to prepare his own things. Going back into the kitchen, Minato almost stumbled on their weapon pouches and he swore when he walked on their kunaïs, scattered on the floor. He stepped over them and looked in all the cupboards for something he could cook in less than five minutes.

As if he really had the choice...

He heated up some water and poured it in two ramen cups. While waiting, he went back in his room to take a few scrolls he had to bring to the Tower. Above him, from what he could hear, Naruto seemed to be in the same hurry, if not more.

"_Me and my stupid challenges..." _He mentally cursed himself. "_Only Gaï would have thought of __something like that..." _He ran back in the kitchen three minutes later and almost burned his fingers when he took the cups. He had no time to prepare bowls and immediately went in the dining room.

From there, everything went very quickly.

Or very slowly, depends on the point of view.

Minato was going to turn back, prepared to do a large step over the kunaïs when he suddenly heard the sound of a flash. Besides that, nothing warned him from his son's imminent arrival on the very same kunaïs... So he acted accordingly.

"Aaaahhh!!"

Two pairs of eyes, cerulean blue and dark red, opened wide when the two blond heads collided with each other, promising the Ramen a single ticket for terra firma.

Luckily... father and son were excellent shinobi, even half-awaken. Naruto jumped over the Hokage while Minato was doing a large slide step and the two ninjas managed to catch the cups -as well as their content- half a second before their unexpected meeting with the floor.

"Naruto!" Yondaime was still a bit startled. "Don't use the Hiraishin at home!" He almost got a heartattack at the moment.

"Ah... sorry." Naruto said. "I knew they were somewhere here." He added, talking about the kunaïs. "So I thought... it would be faster."

Minato shook his head. "I should have pick them up." But he frowned slightly, realizing something. "Or maybe not... I'm not sure the cupboards would have been a nice landing place." He said, smiling.

"Hm..." True.

A horrified look passed on Minato's face when he glanced at the clock. "Five to eight?!"

The rest of the story was just a blurr of yellow flashes, running through the whole appartement during two or three minutes before dashing outside. Minato hastily put away the kunaïs and remebered just in time to change back to Arashi. The two whirlwinds were now running at top speed on the roofs and if anyone had looked up, he would have only see two dark shadows.

"Don't forget that Sasuke and the kunoichi musn't know about your mission." Minato reminded him.

Naruto nodded. "And our sensei already knows that?" he asked.

"Err... yeah, I think." Yondaime answered, trying to remember if he had warned Kakashi or not.

"Okay."

Speaking of which, he had not tell Naruto that the masked Jounin would be their Sensei. Oh well, it wasn't a problem, he would know soon enough.

Late enough should be more appropriate in Kakashi's case. Amused by this idea, Minato wondered how much time, meaning how many hours, the three Genins would have to wait until his arrival.

"Otou-san?" He was pulled out of his relfexions by Naruto's voice.

"Yeah, what?"

The young ninja pointed to a place almost behing them. "The Tower is over there."

For the second time of the day, the former Hokage cursed vividly before turning round to go back on the right way.

On the other hand, Naruto didn't waste time to watch him leave, he was already late enough like that. Shortly after, he arrived at the Academy and frowned at the sight of an empty playground. He had already passed his exam with special conditions, he couldn't also be the last one today. And through the window, he could already see their Sensei open the door of the classroom...

°-°-°-°-°

"Good morning everyone." Iruka said, closing the door behind him.

The students greeted him back and he began his explanations, stopping a few time to answer questions. ".... .... ... and your Sensei will be the one to decide if you can start your missions." He opened his notebook to announce the different teams, making the suspense almost unbearable for the students.

"Shikamaru!" The Chûnin called. "Wake up now, that's important."

The young genius slowly opened his eyes, muttering and yawning but he suddenly froze when he sensed somebody next to him. "Na... Naruto?" He said, not believing it; He hadn't not seen him come at all and was fairly sure that he wasn't here when Iruka came in.

The other students were also looking at him, not less surprised. When had he arrived? And why was he here by the way? Didn't he miss the exam?

At the back of the classroom, Naruto kept an impassive face and innocently looked away.

While their Sensei was calling for attention, Shikamaru's eyes fell on the window, just behind their mysterious classmate. He had the strange feeling that it had not been so wide open a few minutes ago. "Troublesome..." He muttered, rolling his eyes.

Meanwhile, Iruka had begun to announce the teams and sometimes, he could hear shouts of joy or deception.

"Team 7: Uchiha Sasuke..."

All the girls who had not been called yet crossed their fingers.

"... Haruno Saku-"

"Yatta!! I'm with Sasuke-kun!" The young kunoichi shouted out before turning to her blonde friend. "Eat that! Ino-buta!"

"So what? I pity Sasuke-kun, he'll have to put up with a short-tempered forehead girl everyday!" She replied to hide her disappointment.

"You're just jealous!"

"... And Uzumaki Naruto." Iruka finished.

A deep silence instantaneously fell between the two bickering girls. The Chûnin thought that he should have use this name more often, it seemed that it was one of the few things that could stop them.

"... Who?" Sakura said on a disbelieving tone.

The blond ninja wondered if she was doing that on purpose or not. As far as he knew, there wasn't any other Uzumaki in the class, let alone in the Academy. Iruka had to hold back a sigh. "Naruto. You know, the blond haired Genin who's always sitting at the back."

Still surprised, the young kunoichi glanced behind her and briefly cross his blood red gaze before looking away.

"And your Sensei is Hatake Kakashi."

This time, Naruto was the only one startled. He almost did like Sakura and asked 'who...?'. But as usual, he stayed silent and began to count how many hours he would spend in this classroom.

"Team 8: Inuzuka Kiba, Hyûga Hinata, Aburame Shino." Iruka continued. "Your Sensei is Yuuhi Kurenaï."

This annoucement didn't cause as much noise as the previous one, which wasn't very surprising, taking in account Shino and Hinata's usual silent nature.

He was almost at the end of his list. "... Team 10: Yamanaka Ino, Nara Shikamaru and Akimichi Chôji." He said, ignoring the kunoichi's protests, 'What?! I'm with those two lazybones?' "Your Sensei is Sarutobi Asuma."

The Chûnin then closed his notebook and walked to the door. "Your Senseis should be coming soon, so don't make too much noise and behave. Good luck."

After his departure, the students began to relax once more, animatedly talking of their new teams. A few minutes later, their first Sensei, a brown haired Jounin with red eyes, came in.

"Team 8, follow me."

The three Genins glanced aat each other before walking after the young woman. During the next twenty minutes, most of the Sensei came to take their students. There were only three teams left when another brown haired Jounin entered.

"Team.. err... 10, I think. Come with me."

Chôji followed him while eating his last chips, Ino while complaining about their lazy Sensei and Shikamaru dragging his feet.

After a while, only three Genins of team 7 remained. Sakura and Sasuke seemed quite tensed and impatient to meet their Sensei. The young girl was pacing between the door and the black board while the Uchiha, sitting on his table was changing position every five seconds, although he wanted to appear calm. As for Naruto, since he knew pretty well Kakashi's habits -which ninja in the village didn't know them?-, he didn't bother to get ready. He sat on the windowsill and closed his eyes.

His new team mates were throwing him sidelong glances, still silent. Sakura because she had never really talked with him, Sasuke because he was still sour about his last defeat and their problem about that famous invitation. They weren't as uneasy in front of those blood red eyes as before but it didn't mean they had already become friends.

At some moment, their eyes caught sight of a colored sparkle flying around the room. The two Genins watched without much interest a blue butterfly which had entered through the back window. But the small bug caught their attention when he flew near the third ninja and settled on his face, just between his eyes.

Naruto had felt something brush his forehead and easily guessed it was harmless. He slowly opened one eye and saw two cerulean blue wings quietly fluttering.

Sakura and Sasuke were watching him curiously, a bit surprised by his passive attitude. When the young boy closed his eyes, the butterfly felt the movement and flew outside. The Genin didn't have enough time to turn round when an other animal came through the window. This time, it was a bird and it stopped on the windowsill, near the blond ninja. Then a second came, and another one which settled on the windows and Naruto's shoulder.

But he didn't move, he had sensed the fluteering wings and it didn't bother him. He was a bit used to animals, they often came to him without showing the slightest sign of fear, like Akamaru. He didn't really knew why they were so affective but he had never harm them and their compagny was sometimes far less annoying that being with humans.

But for Sakura and Sasuke, the scene was more than strange. Since when their dark and slient team mate, great combatant and fearful opponent, had become a protégé of Mother Nature?

But if they were surprised, they didn't say anything and only watched the curious sparrows who seemed totally at ease. Half and hour later and after several other migrations of birds, they began to get, they stopped to pay attention. They had other preoccupying matters in mind, the arrival of their Sensei for example.

Iruka had told them to wait here, so they waited...

and waited...

and waited...

and...

"_**WHERE**_ is he ?!?! He's already three hours late!!!"

The seven poor sparrows still in the classroom got the greatest fear of their lives and immediately flew away, not really eager to hear the rest of her speech.

"THREE HOURS!!" The young girl shouted out. "I bet he just forgot us!!"

She caught the brush, which had been peacefully lying on a chair, had began to take out her anger on it while pacing between the door and the window. Sometimes she was looking outside, hoping to see a Jounin come in their direction. In vain.

Glancing at her twwo other team mates, she saw that at least one of them seemed to understand her impatience. Sasuke kept an unblinking face but his foot was constantly tapping on the floor. And at th back, Naruto looked as if he was taking a nap.

Unable to bear it any longer, Sakura settled besides the young boy. "Ne Sasuke-kun, don't you think we should tell Iruka-sensei?"

"Hn."

"But he's really late."

"Hn."

"Yeah, you're right."

Naruto was very curious now. Did she often talk alone or were they using a coded language? Opening his eyes, he watched them with interest and his gaze fell on the kunoichi's green eyes.

"Hm... what.. what do you think, Uzumaki-kun..?" She asked hesitantly.

"You don't need to call Iruka-sensei, he should be here soon."

Sakura seemed happily surprised, she had almost expect him to remain silent. Maybe he wasn't that intimidating after all... Even though his voice was still indifferent.

"Oh, okay..."

"How do you know that?" Their third team mate asked.

Naruto just shrugged. "Kakashi-sensei is a friend of my father. Even when he comes to visit, he's still three hours late."

Sakura nodded but Sasuke seemed much more suspicious and glared at the blond ninja. "The brown haired shinobi last time. It was your father." He said, and it wasn't a question.

Naruto wondered for a moment how he knew that but he quickly remembered the events of the previous day. "_We started talking about you and your father._" Of course... Shikamaru. He was thee only who knew about them and they had not thought that he could tell the others, especially after their visit at the Uchiha mansion. There was the result...

"Yeah." He finally admitted. There was no need to hide it longer, it would only create other misunderstanding.

"You didn't tell us when you came last time." Sasuke pointed out.

"You didn't asked." Naruto replied.

The young boy frowned, not really satisfied by this answer. "So why do you have differents names?" Sakura was watching them, a bit worried and wondering if she should say something although she was also quite curious. "Sasuke-kun..." She tried to divert his attention but he didn't even listen to her.

"_Annoying..._" This questionning was slowly getting in Naruto's nerves. "None of your business." He retorted.

Unfortunately it only worsen the situation. Sasuke leap on his feet, glaring daggers at the blond ninja. "None of my business?" He repeated, irritated. "You turn up one day, telling us it's a mission, your father takes his time to flirt with my mom and that's none of my business?!!"

Naruto sratched the back of his head; such a drama queen... But there was one thing he didn't really get. "Flirt?" He asked curiously. "I don't understand what you're talking about." Weird.. he had never heard this word, Minato could maybe explain him.

But speaking of misunderstanding...

"I'm sure you understand perfectly well!" The Uchiha replied. "

"I didn't say anything... yet." Naruto added to be honest after a short thought. "And there's nothing wrong if they 'flirt' as you say." Maybe it only meant 'discussing'. After all, Minato and Mikoto had not really done much more.

"W.. What?!" Sasuke was so angry that he almost choked on his words. He clenched his fists on the table and his figers bumped against something hard: the brush that Sakura had left there.

On the other hand, Naruto wasn't even listening to him anymore and he yawned tiredly. Tsunade had definitely convinced him to try sake for the first and the last time, the difficult awakening this morning was a reason good enough. But Sakura and Sasuke couldn't knew that, and seeing the blond ninja ignoring him, the young boy snapped. "Dobe."

He took the first thing under his hand and threw it, aiming for his team mate. Naruto easily dodged it with a swift movement of the head and the brush fell outside, one floor lower.

"Kuso..." Sasuke muttered. Since his team mate wasn't reacting, he put his hands in his pockets and sat down angrily. Sakura didn't know if she should try to calm him a bit, but before she could decide, she saw Naruto stand up and straight away, the door of the classroom opened.

The first impression the Genin had from their senei was a bit... disconcerting. His face was not only half covered, except one eye, but a large and rectangular white stain was also decorating his hairs and the higher part of his mask. Their gazes fell on the object he was holding.

A blackboard brush.

When his spoke, his voice sounded already bored, almost asleep in fact. "Who... is the total moron... who throws brushes by the window...?"

He looked at them one after the other. The young kunoichi didn't dare to reply and seemed nervous but the inner Sakura was dying lauging at the sight of their Sensei. Sasuke looked away, mumbling something like "Why didn't he dodge it... Is that guy really a Jounin?" Naruto just watched him curiously and stayed silent but the masked ninja knew that another blond shinobi would certainly get wind of this.

Kakashi sight deeply and with a swift movement of the wrist, he snd the brsuh back at the corner of the blackboard. "Climb up and meet me on the roof." He said before disappearing in a cloud of smoke.

Sasuke dragged his feet to the door, followed by Sakura. They were almost in the corridor when the young girl stopped and caught his arm. "Wait Sasuke-kun, there's..."

Her voici faded when she saw the empty classroom. "Eh... where is he?"

"Tch." Sasuke pulled his arm and continued to walk to the stairs, the kunoichi running after him. When they arrived on the roof, they were -almost- not surprised to see that the two ninjas were waiting for them.

"When I said 'climb up and meet me on the roof', I was thinking about the stairs Naruto, not the walls." Kakashi said, his eyes stuck on a little orange book.

"Then you should have been more specific, Sensei." The blond ninja replied.

The two Genin sat down near their team mate and waited for the masked shinobi to say something. "Hm..." He looked up for a short moment. "... Why don't you introduce yourself."

"What should we say?" Sakura asked.

"Well.. your name, age, birthdate, likes, dislikes, hobbies, ambitions, dreams and so on."

"Why don't you start Sensei?"

"Me? Okay. My name is Hatake Kakashi, I'm 27, born the 15th september, I like a few things, dislike some others, I have no particular hobbies or ambitions and there's no need for you to know my dreams."

Two of his students sweatdropped. That was a presentation. All they had learned was his naeme and his age. They would have given him a couple of years more with his silver hairs.

"Your turn." Kakashi said, looking at the kunoichi.

"Okay, so I'm Haruno Sakura, I just got 12 and my birthday is on the 28th of March. I like... (laughs + looks at you know who), I hate Ino-buta and Sasuke-kun's fangirls!"

Her Sensei rolled his eyes. "_And what are you excatly?_"

"My hobbies are... (laughs). My ambition is to become a good kunoichi." The young girl continued."

"_Ah, at last._"

"... Because my dream is to saty with Sasuke-kun for ever!" She finished, turning to her great love, stars in the eyes.

"_Yeah... whatever.._"

Sasuke crossed his arms and tried to look anywhere but at his female team mmate. What had he done to deserve that? Besides them, Naruto was watching the scene with a slight interest. He didn't really understand why Sasuke looked annoyed, what the kunochi said was pretty flattering for him.

"Your turn.. Sasuke-kun." Kakashi said, imitating the high pitch voice of the fangirls.

This earned him a death glare from the Genin. "My name is Uchiha Sasuke, I'll be 12 soon and I was born the 23th July. I like a few thing, dislike many others and I don't have any hobbies or dreams."

"_Don't copy me._"

"My ambition is to kill a certain man and rvive my clan."

"_This is getting better and better..._"

"You're so cool, Sasuke-kun!" -guess who-

'Cool' wasn't exactly the word that Naruto would have used and for a short moment, he wondered who was the man he wanted to kill. If he talked about his clan, maybe he meant-

"Your turn." Kakashi said, catching him unprepared.

" … My name is Uzumaki Naruto, I'm 11, born the 10 October."

The Jounin saw the two others giving him surprised looks, apparently, they didn't know h was the youngest of the three. On the other side, Naruto was starting the most difficult part of his introduction and hsitated a bit.

"I like... .. to train with my father, I guess it's also a hobby... and ramen." He added on second thought.

Kakashi raised an eyebrow at this. "_Note for myself: remember to never invit him at the ramen restaurant. If he has Kushina's stomach, all my savings won't be enough._"

"I hate a certain missing ninja." If the others were so evasive, he didn't see why he should tell more. "And... the Council." He added, receiving confused looks from his team mates.

"My ambition is to become a better ninja."

"_Where are you going to stop?_"

"And for dream.. I don't really know."

Kakashi wasn't surprised by this answer but he realized that in the end, the introductions of Sakura and Naruto were the most normal ones. He and Sasuke, with their 'I don't like anything, I don't like anybody, I have no hobbies, no ambitions, no dreams', they looked a bunch of dead loss who were on the verge of suicide.

"Okay, that's enough for today." He said, chasing those weird thoughts out of his mind. "Let's start with the test now."

"_What test?_" Two of his students thought.

"What test?" The third one asked. "We already pass the exam so we're officially Genin no?"

"You pass the Academy Exam and you are Academy Genin. I'm the Sensei of this team and if you want to be allowed to do missions, you will have to pass my test."

Having caught their full attention, Kakashi took this opportunity to motivate them a little bit more. "And I must warn you, the failure rate of this test is above **66%**..." He would never get tired of those reactions. His poor students looked so horrified by those simple words, it was just too funny.

A voice pulled him out of his petty thoughts. "But isn't that normal?"

"How so?" He asked, turning to Naruto.

"I heard that the failure rating of the Chûnin exam is around 85%, so it's normal if the Genin's rate is lower."

"85%??" Sakura repeated, thoughtful. "Yeah, compared to the others, 66% isn't that much..."

"Hn. Whatever, after all it means that on 100 students, 34 will still become Genins." Sasuke added.

Kakashi's hand clenched his beloved book, the atmosphere had completely changed now. "_Way to go Naruto, you had to ruin my prfect mood._" He sight. "_Sometimes, I forget he's also a Namikaze._"

"Meet me in one our and a half at training ground 9." He told them. "And if I were you, I wouldn't eat lunch otherwise you might throw up." He finished, disappearing in a cloud of smoke.

"Pff, if he thinks I'll forget to eat before another test, ….....^$^$^$^" Sakura muttered, remembering what had happen the previous day. "I'll just continue my special diet tomorrow!"

Sasuke couldn't help but sigh. Just when he thought that she was finally becoming slightly sensible, she had to add something stupid right after.

"Do you know where's the ground 9?" The young girl asked.

Naruto nodded, he knew almost all the training grouns which existed in Konoha. He offered to guide them and the three Genins went out of the Academy together, under the approving gaze of a certain Jounin, hidden in a nearby tree.

°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°

Four hours after this little conversation, the three Genins of team 7 were still waiting for their Sensei, desesperately late. It was the second time of the day and they had clearly enough of it.

It was already late in the afternoon when he decided to appear. "Yo. You're on time, good."

"We can't say that for you." Sasuke replied.

"Ah sorry sorry, but something cropped up. An old lady asked me to help her carry her bags so I had to accept but on the way, we crossed a black cat so we had to turn round. And since she had fish in her bags, all the cats began to fllow us downtown and we had to cross a river to shake them off. Since she's living 50 miles away from the town, it took a little bit of time."

An incredulous silence followed his little speech, the three ninjas were wondering how he could have created such a pathetic excuse. Kakashi seemed pretty proud of it. It was always like that the first time, they were to surprised to reply.

"There's no river downtown." One of them pointed out.

Kakashi gave Naruto an exasperated look and was going to tell him something but in the end, he just sight deeply. In front of him, he saw Sakura laugh up her sleeve and Sasuke raise an eyebrow, smirking.

"Forget it."

The three ninjas focused again when they saw their Sensei put his book away and take three bells out of his pocket.

"This is your test."

Then he made several hands signs and did a summoning.

"Kuchiyose no Jutsu." In a cloud of smole, three dogs appeared in front of Kakashi. "And here are your examiners."

Seeing their surprised faces, he gave them a few explanations. "Each of you will have to cacth a bell." He said, tying them at the dogs' collar. "I must warn you, they received an advanced ninja training and it won't be so easy. If you lose their trail, you might not see them again for a while." He gave each student one of his dogs because strangely, they all seemed to go in Naruto's direction. "Of course, I will not be a simple spectator so keep alert because I can attack at any moment and I will not hold back."

Then he took out a watch from his jacket. "You have two hours starting from now, leave thirty second of advance to the dogs. Go!"

At this signal, the summons dashed away in three different directions and the ninjas had to force themselves to stay on the spot, watching them running away.

"Twenty seconds left... ten.. five.. oh yeah, I forgot to tell you. If you fail, you will go back in the Academy."

"What?!?"

"Go!"

Confused for a short moment, Sakura and Sasuke quickly pulled themselves together and began to chase their targets. Naruto had disappear from the training ground in less than half a second and Kakashi was glad he had chosen his fastest dog. Luckily, he would be able to keep the young ninja running for a while.

The fact that Naruto was an Anbu level shinobi had obliged him to change a bit his usual test because the boy would not have needed the help of his team mates to steal him a bell. Fortunately, this method would also allow him to test their abilities. Starting to walk away, he looked up, thumbs up, knowing that his 'assistant' was watching the test behind his cristall ball.

°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°

If Sakura had known that someone was watching them like that, comfortable in his armchair while they were desesperatelyrunning after a damned dog who didn't even seem to be tired, she would have eagerly strangle him. Hokage or not.

Fourty five minutes after the beginning of the test, the kunoichi had still not managed to catch her target. Even worse, the dog nin was slowed down a few times and looked back at her as if he was laughing of her lack of stamina. She should really try to train a bit more...

The dog had now brought her on the training grounds located on the other side of the village and she was still running when she suddenly felt the earth shake under her feet and something catching her ankles.

"Kyaa!"

While Sakura was sinking into the ground, she saw a silver haired ninja coming out. "Doton: Shinjûzanshu no jutsu. (1)" Kakashi said, kneeling in front of the the young girl whose head only was sticking out. "First lesson: Ninjutsu."

Sakura had a frozen expression os surprise on her face and after a few seconds of silence, she blew up in a cloud of smoke.

"Kawarimi no jutsu..." Her Sensei said for himself, looking at the log which had replaced his student. He could still sense her chakra further on the grounds but for a first time, it wasn't that time.

On the other hand, Sakura had to speed up. Because of the sudden attack, she had almost lost track of the dog and he was quickly running away. She looked back nervousle, hoping that she had outrun her sensei, then focused back on what was happening in front of her...

… and almost fell flat on her face when she saw who was there.

"Sa... Sasuke-kun?!" Her emerald eyes were filled with horror at the dreadful sight of her crush. Lying on the ground, his body pierced by severals senbons and kunaïs, he was covered with wounds and bloody cuts. "Oh no, Sasuke-kun!"

Forgetting the dog and the bell in an instant, the kunoichi rushed at his side. She almost cried of relief when she saw that he was still breathing and he opened slowly his eyes when she put a hand on his shoulder. "Sasuke-kun, you're alive! What happened?!"

"It... it's Kakashi.. sensei.." He said in a dying voice, blood at the corner of his lips. "He trapped... me and he... he also caught Uzumaki... not far.."

"What?!"

"We.. we're all counting on.. you... Sakur-argh..." In a last breath, his head fell.

"Nooo! Sasuke-kun don't die!"

After one or two minutes of tearful cries and heart-rending farwells, the young kunoichi realized that he was still breathing and that his heart had not stop beating. Drying her tears, she stood up and began to lift her dearest love on her shoulders. "Leave it to me Sasuke-kun. I won't let you down!" She said in a passinonate voice before leaving in quest of their third knight, suffring or even dying somewhere in those vast desertic lands!

Not far from there, a critical eye had observed the whole scene. "_A little bit too tragic... but good teamwork spirit._" Kakashi thought. To be honest, he didn't really doubt the kunoichi. Tsunade could have bet that she wasn't going to abandon Sasuke, she would have won despite her legendary bad luck. And he was more than glad to see that she didn't forget the last member of the team. However, she really needed to train.

But there was a right time for everything. For now, he had another student to test.

°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°

While Sakura was running around the village, Sasuke had been lead toward the Hokage mountain and was almost behind it now. Already more than an hour had passed since the beginning of the test and if he had ever thought of catching the dog easily at first, this feeling had quickly faded away.

How could a dog be so fast?? And furthermore, he showed absolutely no sign of slowing down.

Sasuke's attention was totally focused on his target and they had just entered in another field when he suddenly heard triggering sounds and right after, several kunaïs came flying in his direction. Hm, so Kakashi had also set a few traps... Trying to keep trail of th dog, he managed to dodge all the weapons without getting touched.

But as he was trying to speed up, Sasuke was surprised by a sudden attack of his sensei. He barely delfected a fist which was aiming for his head but couldn't avoid the foot which hit his stomach.

"Second lession." Kakahsi said as he landed. "Taijutsu."

Sasuke stood up immediately and dashed forward, using a few shurikens to delude him before doing a round kick, hoping to make him lose his balance. But the Jounin easily caught the shurikens and made a back flip to dodge the blow. His young student didn't lose time to run after him and followed the bell right away.

Kakashi put the shurikens away and let him one or two seconds before going after him. But just as he was going to catch up, he heard a metallic noise and a serie of explosion forced him to move back a little. When the cloud of smoke disappear, he saw that Sasuke had already run away and he smiled appreciatively.

On the other side, Sasuke had been obliged to accelerate and his lungs seemed on the verge of bursting out. He didn't like to run away in a fight, but at least, he had not lost track of his main target. He was now running through the field behing the mountain, between the trees which's green foliage left only a few rays of sun pass, enlightening the pink bushes.

Hold on... pink??

Slightly slowing down, he looked back and realized that the bush was n fact the lying silhouette of his team mat. Apparently she was unconscious and her multiples wounds showed that she had been hit by a powerful blow. That made him hesitate, maybe she needed help... But if he went back now he would surely miss his chance to become a Genin... But still, he flt uneasy at the idea of leaving her in this state...

Lost in his thoughts, Sasuke almost stumbled on a golden rock with red stains. He quickly jumped over it and continued.. his.. run... … … a rock?

Uzumaki?

Indeed, it was his third team mate, lying on the ground and just as in bad shape as the kunoichi, if not worse. Even if he didn't like him, he had not acknoledge that he was quite strong and if he was in this state himself.. what about Sakura?

Watching the dog and th bell disappear, he had to force his pride to turn around. "Kuso!"

Hidden in the trees, Kakashi had observed everything. Surprised at first, then slightly displeased, he was now quite relieved. For a short moment, he had feared that the genin would abandon his team mates but in the end, he was glad to see that Sasuke was still worried about them.

From the corner of his eye, he saw Sasuke going back after the bell, carrying his two team mates. He was really stubborn... Now that the dog had run away, he doubted that he could catch up before next week.

It was now time to see how his last student was doing.

°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°

An hour and fifteen minutes after the beginning of the test, Naruto was starting to understand Sakura's thought. It wasn't one Hokage but two he could have strangled at this moment.

Why on earth had he let Minato put away the kunaïs this morning?

He could have caught his target quite easily, despite the dog nin's speed, if he had not been using summoning seals. Five minutes after the beginning, he had been at a hair's breadth away of catching the bell when the four leg ninjas had suddenly disappear in front of his eyes to appear again, miles away.

And of course, it was only at this time that he realized a certain three branched kunaï was missing.

Since then, the dog had constantly used seals that he could hardly detect and when he managed to do so, it was often too late. Then he had to go again and search for the dog who had already appear at the other side of the village twice.

As he was once more racing through Konoha at light speed, he realized that Kakahsi had not attacked him yet. Not that he complained but he thought that it was a bit strange, maybe his sensei was going to trap him at the last moment. He would have to keep alert... after he caught that damn dog!!

He had just spotted him in the forest near the village and was now running in the trees when he caught sight of a someone in front of him. Someone who seemed to be deeply wounded. He recognized those pink hairs in one instant.

Haruno.

What was she doing here? And moreover, why was she in this state?

Their sensei wouldn't go that far for a simple test... Maybe it was a genjutsu then? No, he didn't detect anything, no the slightest signature of chakra which would have betrayed a Henge. He was quickly approching the immobile form when another entered in his field of vision.

The Uchiha now.

It was crazy, they couldn't have been caught like that in the same place... couldn't they? If it wasn't a genjutsu, not even a trail of chakra then he had to help them. Too bad for the bell. Naruto had already some difficulties to find the dog when he kept his eyes on him so he douted that he could catch him if he made a detour. It would need two of him to finish this test....

… …

Oh no, how could he forget this jutsu..?

He had learnt it the day before so maybe wasn't used to it. But still, it didn't prevent him from feeling a bit ridiculous at this moment. He made the cross seal with his hands and performed his technique. "Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!"

"_What?_"

Two clones appeared at his sides and while one Naruto ran after the dog, the two others moved at right and left, pushing away the branches to came by their team mates.

Several meters away, a very surprised masked ninja had almost got one branch in the face and he cursed silently. Following Naruto without gtting caught was already hard enough... "_What? … When did he learn that technique?_" the Jounin wondered. If he had created this test, it was especially because he was aware that Naruto didn't know this jutsu. He had checked it the previous day... The young ninja couldn't have learn that during the night..?

Well, at least the boy didn't abandon his 'dying' team mates. "Third lesson Naruto, Genjutsu." He said, smirking. In the morning, he had asked Sarutobi to create those two clones of Sakura and Sasuke to be sure that the blond ninja could detect the jutsu. This precaution had been useful and he could already imagine their faces when they would all meet with each other.

He retunred to the meetin point, unable to get free from the feeling that he had forgotten something important...

°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°-°

A few minutes later, Kakashi arrived on training ground 9 and while waiting for his students, he took out his book. That was his favourite part -when Nana-chan finds her previous lover and when Kai-kun comes back from his long journey with his new fiancee! But just as their best friend Kyoko-chan discover them unexpectedly! And when her ex-boyfriend Shun-sama, who is also the gang leader, dies! And-

"Err... Sensei..?"

The Jounin looked up, he had sensed them coming but this part of the book was so captivating, so heart-moving and funny... Almost as funny as their faces at this moment. Now he remembered, too bad he had forgotten his camera.

There was a few seconds of hesitant silence between the three ninjas. And for good reason! Sasuke was carrying _Sakura _on his shoulder and _Naruto _under his arm. He was facing Sakura who was holding _Naruto_ and _Sasuke_. (Are you still following?) She was besides Naruto, Naruto and Naruto who were carrying _Sakura_ and _Sasuke_ as well as a bell.

"I thought I had only three students." Kakashi said mockingly.

Naruto sighed slightly, understanding that they had been deceived. The Naruto who was holding the bell threw it to the one who was carrying Sakura and disappear with the one who was supporting Sasuke. The two real and confused Genins saaw their copies fall on the ground and blow up in a cloud of smoke.

Sakura and Sasuke exchanged a knowing look and also dropped the fake ninjas before turning to their Sensei. The Jounin had been pleasantly surprised to see that the true Naruto wasn't the one who had caught the bell and asked him why.

"I thought I should stay with them since they were 'wounded'." The young ninja replied.

Kakashi nodded and then faced the rest of Team 7. "So, no bell?"

Sakura looked down, fearing the jugdment while Sasuke clenched his fists, angry against himself. They were expecting the worse when the Jounin sighed. "Naruto, you pass. Bring those two back in the Academy." He said with a cold voice, his face had also taken a strict expression.

On the other side, Naruto had not answered yet. He was a bit uneasy in front of their defeated faces.

_Free me... It's not fair... Free me..._

Again this voice in his mind, he had not heard it for a while. It seemed as strange as before but he had to recognized that it wasn't wrong.

"Sensei..." He began, catching the Jounin's attention. "It.. it's unfair." It wasn't everyday that he opposed his superiors but this time, he couldn't stay silent.

"They had their chance, like you." Kakashi retorted. "And apprently, they didn't deserve it."

Those words brought the kunoichi close to tears and made her team mate seeth with anger. But before he could reply, he was cut by the blond ninja.

"But the test was really difficult." Naruto pleaded, speaking from experience. "And I was lucky."

That wasn't only a lie to hide his real abilities, it was partly the truth. After saving Sakura and Sasuke, he created an army -in the literal sense- of Kage Bunshin to find the dog. And one of his clone managed to catch it just as he appeared on a summoning seal.

"This is not a valid argument. If you are so willing to defend them, maybe you should go back with them in the Academy."

"No!" Naruto was going to reply but his female team mate had been faster. The three shinobi turned to her, startled. "No... well, I mean... you don't have to do that. It's our fault is we missed... not yours." The young girls continued, still looking down. "I couldn't see the trap, I guess I'm not good enough..."

"I don't mind going back to the Academy." Naruto told her. The kunoichi raised her head and crossed his gaze, surprised to see something else than indifference in those eyes. He was on her side, that faint glow, could it be... friendship? "I 'don't mind waiting another year." The blond ninja added. "At least I know I can rely on my team mates."

Before, he had almost never work in a team, his missions were mainly solos. But having team mates who were ready to help him because thay _wanted_ to was a change he appreciated. Sakura's emerald eyes seemed to lighten and were filled with gratefulness. She had not expected him to defend them so much. "Thanks..."

In front of them, Kakashi seemed even less satisfied. "I see. If this is what you want, you will be three to go back to the Academy." He said before speaking to his third student. "Do you have something to add, Sasuke?"

"Hn." was his brilliant asnwer. "I don't care. It would even more troublesome to change teams."

"Sasuke-kun..." The young girl whispered, truly overjoyed.

The Jounin shook his head, he seemed sorry for them. "All right, if you all say so..." He paused. "Meet me here tomorrow at 8 o'clock." He finished on a light tone.

"Eh?" Three pairs of surprised eyes looked at him.

"You all pass. Congratulations!"

"But... but..." Still confused, Sakura couldn't find her words. Besides her, Sasuke seemed frozen in a astounded silence.

Naruto wondered why he had suddenly changed his mind, they were ready to back in school, so what could have pleased Kakashi? They had joined forces against him and himself had refused to pass the test, was this what their Sensei had tried to do from the beginning?

"You wanted to test our teamwork?" He asked, a bit unsure.

"Eaxctly. I had to know if you were ready to chose between the mission and your team." The masked ninja replied. "And I'm glad to see you chose well."

Naruto nodded, Sakura was beaming and even if Sasuke wanted to appear cool, it was clear that he was also relieved.

"Never forget that. Those who abandon the mission are trash. But those who abandon their comrades are lower than trash." He told them in a serious voice, and he was pleased to see that they were carefully listening.

"Well, see you tomorrow then. And don't be late!" He said, disappearing.

Walking away, he heard a voice calling after him. "Practice what you preach!" He chuckled, the next book of the Icha Icha seires would be in the bookstores the next day. There was no way he would ever miss that.

The sun was slowly going down and the three Genins parted and went back home. When naruto arrived at his appartement, his father was already waiting for him.

"So, how was your test?" He asked with a mischevious smile. "Not too difficult?"

Naruto raised an eyebrow when he caught sight of his special kunaï, right in the middle of the table... Minato chuckled when he saw his septical look. "Sarutobi told me that you mastered the Kage Bunshin, when did you learn it?"

"Yesterday, after defeating Mizuki."

Yondaime shook the head. Really... this boy deserved the title of the most unpredictable ninja... And that reminded him something.

"That's what you wanted to tell me yesterday?"

"No... But I also forgot to tell you that." Naruto realized.

Minato sight, rolling his eyes. Oh yeah, unpredictable... He ruffled the blond hair of his son.

"So how was your day?"

Naruto thought about it for a bit, remembering the events of the day.

"Fun." He finally said before telling him the whole story.

°-°-°-°-° Two months and a half later °-°-°-°-°

In this hot afternoon of mid July, the great forest of Konoha was filled with sounds of singing birds, rustles of leaves in the trees... and cracklings of walkie-talkies.

"Sakura?"

"At point A, I'm ready. The target is running away, toward North east."

"Sasuke?"

"Point B, ready. The target changed direction, toward North west."

"Naruto?"

"At point C... With the target."

"Already? Okay, gather."

Two seconds later, four blurred silhouettes jumped from the branches and landed in a small clearing. Four and a half to be more precise. Their target was purring on Naruto's shoulder in blissfulness.

"A red bow on the ear, it's him." Kakashi said before glancing at a stopwatch he had taken out from nowhere. "Less than 5 minutes, you beat your own record Naruto." They began to walk toward the Hokage Tower.

The blond ninja shrugged, with one shoulder since the other was taken by a snoring cat, he didn't need to do much. Next to him, Sakura looked at her team mate, smiling. "Oooh, that's so cute... Tora-chan really loves you!" Behind, Sasuke was... well Sasuke as usual, silent, arms crossed.

The two Genins had been a little surprised at first to see that this cat, so annoying with them, seemed to melt in happiness when he came near their team mate. But they didn't really complain, thanks to that, their mission was quickly done. And since they had to do it more than ten times a week, the cat's hobby being evasion, it wasn't a bad thing.

"You should adopt Tora-chan." Kakashi suggested when they entered in the Tower. "He would never escape again."

Naruto glanced at the brown furr ball who didn't let him go. "I don't think his owner would be okay with that..." He said slowly as they arrived in front of the Hokage's office.

On the other side of the door, they could already hear louds cries of despairs, followed by sobs and prayers. "Speaking of th devil..." Their sensei whispered, he was a bit hesitant to open the door.

Unfortunately, he had no other choice and as soon as he turned the handle the screams became even louder, mistreating their poor ears. "Tooooraaaaa-chaaaaaaaaan!!!" At this moment, their vision was clouded by an enormous dark mountain, aka Shijimi-sama, who was dangerously getting near.

Kakashi, Sakura and Sasuke cautiously got out of the way, leaving their team mate alone to deal with a hysterical cat who didn't want to leave him. After a long fight, the blond ninja finally managed to peel the cat off his shoulder and to give him back to his owner, receiving several scratches during the process.

Hokage, Jounin and Genin watched the traditional reunion scene with a bored look, wondering how much pressure a cat could take before being flatten, for good.

Then the daimyo's wife turned to her saviour, still holding the poor animal.

"Oh thank you, thank you, thank you soooooooo much!!"

"It.. it's nothing, really." Naruto managed to say. He was desesperately trying to listen his sense of duty and to ignore his instinct which was shouting him to run away. And run away fast.

"No, no, no! You're alwaaaays bringing him baaaaack!" She continued on a high pitched tone. "I must ab-so-lu-tely thaaaank yoooouuuu!! Come here big boy!"

Naruto didn't get enough time to look surprised, he was caught in a death hug. From the corner of his eye, he could see his team mates and the Hokage watching him snickering while he was seriously strating to lack oxygene.

After a few endless seconds, Shijimi-sama finally released the blond ninja and she went out while petting/crushing her cat aka, Tora the crepe.

Once she was gone, the Hokage could help but tease him a bit more. "I should assign you this mission for life Naruto, Shijimi-sama would be delighted."

Naruto gave her a doubtful look, catching his breath. He had never done D-ranked missions but he would have never thought that they could be so dangerous...

"Okay no time to laugh." The Sannin cut, back to serious-Hokage mode.

The blond ninja coughed a last time, who was laughing here..?

"So, for your next mission." The Hokage began, looking at her files. "Hm... There was a last minute change." Those few words were enough to catch their attention. Maybe it meant the end of D-ranked missions. "I had planned to give you your first C-ranked mission but...

Ah, so there was a 'but'. They feared the complications which could prevent them from going out of the village. "Kakashi is required for an- Oï, Kakashi! You could at least pretend to be listening!" She told him, exasperated to see that he was still burried in his book.

"I'm listening, I'm listening.." He said without even looking up.

The Sannin sighed but still continued her xplanations. "So as I was saying, Kakashi is required for another mission right now but luckily for you, I found a replacement." This announce greatly relieved the Genins. Kakashi was a good Sensei but the perspective of a C-rank mission was much more attractive. "Be glad that I still have an unemployed Jounin for you."

Footsteps could be heard behind the door and it opened a few seconds later, revealing a face who wasn't unknown to everyone. "Who is unemployed?" The shinobi asked.

"Who do you think?" The Hokage replied.

"Otou-san..." Naruto said, startled.

Sasuke frowned while Sakura was curiously staring at the Jounin, finally discovering the famous father of her team mate.

"Here's your new Sensei, Uzumaki Arashi." Tsunade told them. "Get ready, you're leaving tomorrow for Hoshi no Kuni."

TBC...

* * *

(1) Doton: Shinjûzanshu no jutsu: Art of the fatal decapitation (or something like that)

For the ones who don't remember, Hoshi no Kuni is a special arc in the anime. If it's needed, I'll write a quick summary of this story next time.

and yes, for those who remember really well, I did realize that Hoshi no Kuni dosen't exist. it's the hidden village of the star (Hoshi gakkure) in the land of bears (Kuma no Kuni). But I noticed that too late and I'm really too lazy to write again the french chapter. bear with it^^

I'll try to update the next chap, with the french one. -I'll try...-

See ya!


	11. Chap 10: Multiple Mysteries

Rejoice my dear English readers! This you have not only caught up with the French version but you even get an extra scene that wasn't included in the chapter 10 of 'Un Prisonnier Oublié'.

It's not that I'm more in inspired with Shakespeare's language but I just realized I sucked at chapter arrangement. Really really sucked. Since I had more time to think about it for the English version, I rearranged it a bit.

Thanks again for all the reviews, adds and everything! I think I already said it but You Guys Are The Best!

Anyway, back to the story. Enjoy!

* * *

_Forgotten Prisoner_

_Chapter 10: Multiple Mysteries_

The land of Star.

A state of limited influence in the ninja world, rarely considered by the five other Elemental nations. But this small country in fact held a powerful and mysterious weapon. The people of Hoshi no Kuni had been very protective of their secret for several generations, almost never allowing foreign ninjas to approach it.

"So why are they calling us now?"

Running through the forest, a brown haired shinobi turned to his young student. "It seems that this time the threat comes from their ranks and apparently, they don't have enough fully trained ninjas to protect it."

Sakura nodded slowly, thoughtful. Then another question popped in her mind. "But what is it exactly, that weapon?" She asked, curious. "It's not a real star, isn't it?"

Her two teammates were wondering the same thing and they listen closely to their sensei's explanations. "We don't really know. It seems that it fell from the sky, several decades ago. But what we learned for sure is that it possesses particular powers and that the star ninja managed to exploit them." Arashi said. "But don't ask me what those powers are, I don't know anything."

To be honest, he did have a slight idea but the reports he read were supposed to be only available to the Hokage. Well, a little white lie wouldn't do much harm. Yondaime began to slow down and told his students to follow him. "We'll stop here for today. The sun is already down and I don't want to travel by night in this region."

They set their camp in a small clearing and while his students were settling down, Arashi quickly checked the area. They weren't out of the Fire country yet but near its border, it was safer to keep alert. When he came back at the camp, he found a desperate Sasuke who was trying to escape Sakura's clutches by all means whereas Naruto was quietly starting to prepare the dinner. Holding back a smile at the children's antics, Arashi was going to sit down when he realized something.

"_Uh oh..._" Why Naruto always volunteered to do the meals? Walking to his son, he put a hand on his shoulder. "Leave it to me; I'll take care of that. Could you refill the gourds instead?"

Naruto seemed a bit surprised to be stopped so soon but he simply nodded before walking away to a near river. Yondaime couldn't help but sigh in relief.

On the other hand, Sakura hadn't lost a single bit of their exchange. She frowned disapprovingly, they might be father and son but that didn't mean he could excuse him all the time. "Why wouldn't he do the cooking too?" She asked her sensei.

Arashi gave her a soothing smile. "I'm not doing that out of favoritism. It's quite the opposite in fact." Seeing her confused face, he lowered his voice to explain. "Since it's your first mission out of the village, I suppose you've never tasted one of his meals yet?"

"No."

"Well, you should better keep it this way. The last time he cooked, everything was almost burned to ashes.." Arashi felt his stomach cringing at the only memory of that dinner. "I thought I was eating carbonized dirt, if not worse."

Naruto came back at this moment, and while he was going back to his stuff, paying them no attention, Sakura whispered to her sensei "Was it really _that _bad?"

"You have absolutely no idea." Arashi replied in the same way.

He looked so horrified that the pink haired girl couldn't help but laugh quietly. At first, she had been a bit suspicious of this new sensei, mainly because of this weird misunderstanding about his name. But in fact, she thought he was a very nice person. She didn't know yet what kind of ninja he was but if Godaime had assigned him to this mission, he should be at least as strong as Kakashi.

Now much more at ease with each other, sensei and deshis spend the rest of the evening chatting together. To tell the truth, Arashi and Sakura were doing a large part of the conversation since Naruto was rarely speaking and Sasuke had not warmed up to this new sensei like his teammate.

The young girl had an insatiable curiosity and she was firing question as easily as shurikens. "You fought during the war?" She said in awe. "Then you must have travel a lot."

"I had my good share of travels, indeed. I was often sent in Tsuchi no Kuni, for spying missions. It's a beautiful country but unfortunately, we were at war and I don't think I would be welcome there, even today."

It was quite strange...when he was Hokage, he had been more than reluctant to talk about those missions which were mainly dangerous killer spree. But now, it seemed to him that all of this belonged to another life. A past life which didn't fit him anymore. Besides if the new generation was curious then he shouldn't try to hide the past history, it might prevent them from doing the same mistakes.

"... and when the treaty of peace was signed..." Well, he couldn't tell everything either. Being promoted Hokage was one of them. "I continued to do some missions out of Konoha even if most of the time; I stayed inside the Fire country. Many ninjas were sent to guard the frontiers which were still dangerous, or sometimes to escort craftsmen or foreign diplomats. We had to rebuild almost everything, buildings but also exchanges, alliances. It was also during that time I married Kushina." He added slowly, almost for himself.

"Kushina?" Sakura repeated, hearing only the last part this sentence and wondering why her sensei seemed so lost in his thoughts. "Who was she?"

"Hm? Oh, Kushina was my wife, Naruto's mother." He added, glancing at his son. "She wasn't native of the Fire country but she lived in Konoha and definitely settled there when we were engaged." To be honest, he didn't really know why he was telling her that too. It was rather personnal and made him feel quite depressed. But on the other hand, he could see an interested look appear on Naruto's face and hear the young girl whisper something like '_Oooh, how romantic...' _unconsciously made him smile.

"_Romantic?_" The tomboy girl that had been Kushina during their first meetings would have laughed her head off.

Yondaime just hoped his student wouldn't ask him- "Was she a kunoichi? Is she still one?"

Bullet's eye.

Naruto, who had curiously listen their conversation until now glanced at his father, a bit worried. He knew it was still a delicate subject for him and was going to answer for him when he replied first.

"Yes, she was a Jounin, trained and working in Konoha. But... She died, many years ago."

Sakura was shocked but this last statement. She clapped a hand on her mouth, very embarrassed. "I.. I'm sorry sensei... I didn't' mean to... I'm so sorry."

Naruto knew he was getting confused and almost sad looks from his team mates but he chose to stay silent.

"Don't worry." Yondaime assured her. "You couldn't know and I was the one who talked about her in the first place."

The young girl nodded slowly, apologizing one more time. She should have guessed since he was speaking at the past and she was a bit angry at herself for being so curious.

A heavy silence had taken place between them and Arashi had to fight hard against it to restart the conversation on a less serious matter. "But tell me more about you. As a sensei, even replacing, I must learn to know my students. "I often worked with the Uchiha but I never met your parents, they are not shinobis if I remember well?"

The young girl was relieved to talk about something else and she did her best to avoid asking other personal questions. "Yes, my parents are both civilians... ..." They continued to discuss together for quite a long time. Each time Minato or Sakura tried to include Sasuke, they only received an uninterested shrug and their sensei had to keep up not rolling his eyes.

But on the other side, their attempts to make Naruto talk weren't really successful either and Yondaime was starting to get a bit worried. His son wasn't exactly the most talkative person on Earth but usually, he was more open. Thinking that maybe he was uncomfortable to stay with his team mates and perhaps a bit tired, Minato took the first watch to let them rest.

The next day, at dawn, team 7 was back on the road, running and jumping through the trees toward North West. If Arashi had been alone or only followed by Naruto, they would have made it by the end of the morning but since they had new team mates, they were forced to slow down a little. They had now less than an hour of walk so Yondaime decided to send Naruto ahead.

After a nod, the blond ninja gathered his chakra in his legs and a few seconds later, he was out of sight.

"How did he do that?" A surprised kunoichi asked her sensei. But the man only gave her a vague answer. "I taught him a few things."

He understood that this would earn him a lot of questions later, not to mention that Sasuke only darkened more each time his team mate performed this kind of thing. But it would have been ridiculous to ask Naruto to keep a level of genin. Sakura and Sasuke knew perfectly well that he had never attended to the Academy's classes, they should guess that he had followed another training.

Lost in his thoughts, Minato didn't realize that his son had not said a word since they had woke up.

Far ahead his team, Naruto was now approaching the end of the forest. He had not sensed any danger all the way long and began to slow down so they could catch up.

Since the previous day, he was strangely calm, as if all the doubts and worries he had felt those few months had suddenly flown away. It was surprising, not really disturbing, just strange. He had a duty to respect, team mates to protect and for now, only that mattered. He didn't say anything to Minato. Why would he? There was no need to embarrass Yondaime with his ninjas' personnal problems, the mission came first.

Naruto had jumped off the trees and was now walking on a road which lead out of the forest. After a few minutes, he arrived in front of a large canyonwhich crackedearth on several kilometers. It seemed that there wasn't any bridge in this area. The young ninja was going to inspect it more thoroughly when he sensed a presence.

Naruto immediately stepped back and avoided the bombs which exploded just in front of him. He turned around and threw a few shurikens in the trees to force his opponent to come out.

Hidden in the foliage, a dark silhouette dodged the shurikens and pressed itself against the trunk. If that blond ninja thought he could find him so easily, he was mist-

"Don't move."

A cold blade brushed against his neck as a hard voice was questioning him. "Who are you? Why did you attack me?"

Naruto had used the Henge to transform in a shuriken and a Kage Bunshin to throw him. The other ninja wasn't taller than him but he couldn't see his face since it was covered by some kind of gas mask. The former anbu was keeping alert and thought he had caught him when a sudden burst of chakra took him by surprise.

An explosion of energy forced him to step back and the black haired shinobi managed to free himself. He jumped on the ground and fled from the forest.

Naruto frowned and quickly ran after him, he wasn't going to let him escape. "_I've never seen this kind of chakra._" he thought, seeing that it surrounded the enemy like a purple aura. Naruto sped up and swiftly created two clones who followedthe shinobi like shadows. When he turned around to attack, the stealthy former anbu easily dodged the bursts of chakra and with his clones, he sent him a shower rain of shurikens.

Surprised by this triple attack, the enemy ninja didn't manage to avoid all the needles. They were soaked in a poison which paralyzed muscles and Naruto didn't wait long to see his opponent stumble and fall on the ground. The violet chakra was less intense but had not disappeared yet. Naruto had no problem dodging the weak attacks but since this ninja didn't seem eager to give up, he decided to finish it quickly.

The easiest solution was to use the Rasengan. Naruto made a new Kage Bunshin and they both created a whirling orb. The clone moved first, deflecting the purple chakra with the energy of the sphere. The blond ninja was going to follow him when he felt another shinobi coming.

"Naruto! Stop it!"

The former anbu dispelled his jutsu as his father arrived, Sakura and Sasuke trailing behind him. On a sign of their sensei, they went to the mysterious ninja who had collapsed, while Arashi was talking to Naruto, looking rather shocked. "What happened here?"

"He attacked me when I came out of the forest." Naruto replied. "I wanted to catch him and question him later."

"You didn't need to go that far. He could have died." Yondaime had immediately seen that Naruto had the situation in hand and he didn't understand why he had used the whirling orb. A good ninja should indeed make sure that his enemy would not stand up again but still... He didn't think he would go so far.

"I wasn't going to kill him, but he was trying to escape." Naruto said with an indifferent voice.

"He can't move! The Rasengan is a powerful jutsu and he's only a child!" Arashi protested. The boy could even be older that his own students.

"He's a ninja."

Minato was taken aback by this answer. Yes, in theory, every shinobi whatever his age was considered like an adult but to think that Naruto wouldn't hesitate to harm him that much.. He didn't know what to say anymore.

"Putting this aside," He continued. "I'd like you to use the Rasengan only as a last resort. And if possible, not against children." He was going to join his other students when the answer of his son froze him on the spot.

"As you wish."

The green eyes of Arashi widen in surprise and astonishment. "What?" He whispered faintly. He wasn't sure that he heard it well, those words, this voice, there were exact reminders of what Naruto used to be a few months ago. But Minato didn't have time to think about that, he was pulled out of his thoughts by another voice.

"Sensei!" Sakura called. "He's waking up, what do we do?"

Arashi and Naruto walked to them and the Jounin took the place of his student, kneeling besides the young ninja. The boy was pushing himself up with difficulty and flinched when he saw that he was surrounded. "Don't worry, we will not harm you." Minato said.

The ninja glanced at their hitai-ate. "...Konoha?"

"Yes, we were given a mission in Hoshi no Kuni. You're a ninja of the hidden village aren't you?"

The teen nodded. "Why did you attack him?" Arashi asked, showing Naruto. There was a short silence but the ninja finally decided to answer. He removed his mask, revealing a headband marked with the symbol of the star and well as two piercing brown eyes. He pointed to the canyon. "It'd filled with toxic gas, invisible and inodorous. I wanted to make him go away."

Arashi sighed, apparently at this age; all the boys had the same kind of mind: battle first, explanations later. There were other ways to warn from danger. "So why did you run away?"

The ninja looked away, frowning. "I didn't think he would find me.. I panicked..." He had said those last words so quietly that Arashi almost missed them. The paralyzing effects of the senbons were starting to fade and Minato helped the ninja to stand up. "You could have told him more simply that it was dangerous." He said, smiling. "But thanks for warning him."

Naruto caught the look of his father over the ninja's shoulder. "Sorry for attacking you." He said simply.

The other boy crossed his arms, not looking at him directly. "Yeah.. sorry."

"Well, now that everything is settled, could you take us to the hidden village? You seem to know this area quite well." Minato didn't really need his help but this way, he could keep an eye on him and it would be easier to enter the village.

The boy hesitated for a few seconds before nodding. "Okay, follow me." He tried to stand up by himself but his legs were still shaking and he would have fallen if Naruto, who was the closest to him, had not caught him. "Hold on my shoulder." The former anbu offered.

The ninja didn't answer but still complied, admitting he couldn't walk properly yet. Minato smiled at the two boys and the team took the way to the village. "By the way, I didn't introduce myself. I'm Arashi, Jounin of Konoha and this is my team."

"I'm Sumaru, genin of Hoshi-gakure."

The kunoichi walked besides him. "My name is Sakura, nice to meet you." She told him, smiling. Sumaru nodded and turned to her other teammate. "Sasuke." He presented himself.

"My name is Naruto." The blond ninja finished.

Sumaru had not yet forgiven him their little duel. "Naruto? Hn, weird name." He added in a sarcastic voice. Naruto didn't reply and just shrugged, making the brown eyed genin wince in pain. "Teme..." he grumbled.

Amused by their antics, Minato would have almost forgotten Naruto's strange behavior. While walking to the village, he was constantly observing his son, promising himself to have a serious talk with him later.

When they reached the village, Sumaru could already walk on his own, which was good since he was almost kidnapped by a bunch of younger ninjas wanting his help for training. And that's how they exchanged guides. A kunoichi, named Hokuto guided them to the office of Hoshi-gakure's leader. They only waited for a few minutes before being greeted by their host. The man had a pale and emaciated face, framed by grey hair.

"I am Akahoshi, the leader of the star village." He said when they introduced themselves. "I thought that the ninjas of a great nation such as Konoha would be more punctual. We were expecting you sooner." He

"I am terribly sorry, we came across some problems." Arashi apologized, although he knew that those reproaches were perfectly ridiculous.

"It doesn't matter. As you know, your mission is the protection of our star." Akahoshi explained. "It is our country most precious treasure and had it been possible, I wouldn't have called foreign shinobi. A ninja has deserted our village and is trying to steal the star."

"What could he do with it?"

"This is none of your concern!" the ninja retorted. "The only thing you should focus on is the protection of the star against that thief. Do not approach it either; our shinobi must not be disturbed during their training. Hokuto will show you the way." He assigned the young girl.

But as he was going to stand up, the door of the office suddenly burst open, revealing a young boy. His black hair was messed up and he was breathing heavily.

"Akahoshi-sama!"

"Mizura?"

"The star! The thief is back!"

"What?"

Arashi also stood up and told his team to follow him. "Let's go."

The seven ninjas ran out of the building and took the road toward the training grounds. While running, Mizura was trying to explain them the situation. "He took us by surprise, we couldn't stop him. Sumaru told me to hide and to call you once the thief was gone. I think he went after him- Ah!"

"Mizura!" Hokuto ran besides the young boy who had fallen on the ground, one hand clutching his chest. "Are you okay?" Mizura slowly nodded but his response was cut by a hard cough. "Go, we'll catch up later." Hokuto said while helping the boy.

"You'll be all right?" Sakura asked, worried.

"Yes-"

"What are you waiting for?" Akahoshi cried out. "The thief is running away!"

Surprised looks were exchanged among the ninjas of Konoha but they didn't protest. "Be careful." Arashi told the two kids before following the Hoshikage. He didn't like how this man acted toward them. Even in situations of emergency, a leader should also think about his ninjas and their security.

The ninjas of the leaf followed Akahoshi who lead them to a strange valley. The landscape was blighted by an enormous crater. All around the cavity, burned trees had fallen on the ground and a large building was towering up in the middle. It looked like a sanctuary but Arashi guessed it was the star ninjas' training place. A pitiful vision greeted them when they walked through the doors.

In the main room, several young ninjas were lying on the floor, unmoving. An in the center, the pedestal which usually supported the star was now empty.

The group from Konoha had stopped at the doors and was going to help the unconscious ninjas but they were surprised by Akahoshi who rushed at the pedestal. "Kuso! He already ran away with the star!" He cried out, not even glancing at his shinobis. "We must catch him, leave your brats with them and follow me!" He said to Arashi before storming out.

Minato frowned; he was getting more and more revolted by his attitude. But it wasn't a good time to discuss, they could settle that later. "Naruto, Sakura, Sasuke, take care of the kids and protect them here. Don't forget Hokuto and Mizura, they should arrive soon."

"Hai!"

While the genins rush up besides the young ninjas, Minato discreetly held back his son. "Check the place and if there's no danger, leave some Kage Bunshin and follow us. Akahoshi went to the North." He told him before turning back.

"As you wish."

Minato froze.

He really hoped he had misheard it. But unfortunately, the serious face and the cold voice of Naruto didn't allow him to doubt. He felt as is his heart was encircled by a deep worry and a growing fear… Fear to see him slip away again.

Yondaime turned to his son, his eyes filled with uncertainty. Why was he speaking like that again? He thought he had started to open up to others.

"Naruto…" he whispered.

But the former anbu wasn't listening to him anymore. Focused on his mission, he had left to take care of the ninjas.

"Sensei?" Sakura's voice pulled him out of his troubled thoughts. The young girl was staring at him, not understanding why he was still standing at the doors.

Arashi pulled him together and after giving Naruto a last look, he dashed outside. It was hard for him but there was still danger out there and he couldn't afford to forget the mission. Catching up with Akahoshi was a matter of seconds. The man started another round of reproaches, that he was late, that he thought Konoha's ninjas were more competent, blah, blah, blah… But Minato was totally deaf to all of this, only wanting to end that mission as fast as possible.

Back to the sanctuary, Naruto and his team mates had quickly taken care of the ninjas. None of them had awakened yet but fortunately, they weren't seriously wounded, just knocked out. Sakura sat beside them while Sasuke was leaning against the wall, watching the whole room. The blond shinobi was standing at the doors. He sent a few clones to check the area and gathered the information when they disappear.

Five minutes later, he saw Hokuto and Mizura coming. Sakura ran beside the young girl to help her support Mizura who looked exhausted. The boy sat near his companions to catch his breath. Naruto was wondering why Mizura was still training with the ninjas. In his state, he should have been placed in a medical center to rest for a while.

Naruto saw that one of the shinobis was waking up, apparently plagued with a wonderful headache. But his story didn't give them more information than what Mizura had told them so Naruto decided to rejoin his father.

If Sasuke had been aware that the blond ninja was leaving to fight with the others, he would have turned green with envy.

Naruto followed Minato's indications for a few minutes and easily found their trail. It would have almost impossible to miss the enormous waves of chakra emanating from the border of the forest. He tried to walk furtively but realized that the ninja thief had already spotted him with his strange violet chakra. Not bothering to be discreet anymore, the former anbu came by Yondaime.

Minato sensed him coming and retreated from the battle during a few seconds while Akahoshi was holding back the masked shinobi. "Naruto, take Sumaru to a safe place." He said, pointing to the unconscious genin. "He was fighting the ninja but he got distracted when we came and he was knocked out."

"Haï. »

In the blink of an eye, Naruto was besides Sumaru and scooped him in his arms. As he ran back into the forest, he caught sight of the enemy ninja who was trying to follow him, but Minato quickly blocked his way. Naruto put Sumaru down in a secured place a few hundred meters away. After checking that the genin and no other wound, Naruto left three Kage Bunshin (good thing he had learned that technique) and went back to the battle field.

"Kujaku Myohô: Kemono!" (2)

A roar echoed in the forest, almost instantly followed by a breaker of pure energy that forced him to slow down. Taking a full view of the scene, he saw that the ninja thief had created a huge beast out of his chakra and with a fling of his arm; he sent it right in their direction. Minato and Naruto had no problem dodging the massive attack but it wasn't the case for Akahoshi. The man had barely enough time to move back, he couldn't avoid totally the blow but managed to reduce its intensity.

The thief called back his chakra monster to prepare another attack. Yondaime rushed besides Akahoshi and wanted to help him to his feet but the ninja of the star didn't take his hand.

"I don't need your help!" He spat while standing up. "You should better get the star back!"

"If you weren't always getting in my way, I would have taken it back a long time ago!"… was what Arashi wanted to tell him but his usual patient nature and his experience in dealing with extreme situations transformed that into "All right, create a diversion and I'll try to break his barrier."

Akahoshi nodded and started to gather his chakra. Yondaime only need to give Naruto a quick glance to tell him they were going to work together. The blond ninja reluctantly turned away from the so called Hoshikage he was glaring at. Had they been anywhere else than in the middle of a fight, he would have gladly volunteered to teach the man some manners. Especially toward the Hokage.

The former anbu focused back on the battle and observed Minato. His father took out his special kunai and discreetly held out three fingers.

Triple offensive then.

"Kujaku Myohô: Zan!" (3)

Akahoshi and the thief attacked at the same time. The sphere of energy around them suddenly shattered as hundreds of chakra feathers cut through the air, aiming for their enemy. The thief's technique was undoubtly the most powerful one but the aggressive shinobi wasn't giving up.

Minato and Naruto didn't lose time to admire them. Using their kunaïs at top speed, they moved around the whole field, quickly dodging the deadly feathers which exploded against each other. The two ninja of the leaf were so fast that they seemed to be at several places at the same time. As soon as they appeared next to their kunai, they picked it up, threw it, and disappeared again.

The ninja thief seemed to have a hard time following them with his feathers of chakra.

_Shokou, first attack_

Less than fifteen meters now separated Minato from the shinobi and in a swift move, he took out a scroll and made a seal which send a shower rain of shurikens and kunaïs toward his opponent. The thief stopped half of it with his feathers and managed to block the rest with his shield but he was temporarily blinded by the smoke of the explosions.

He kept the jounin of Konoha in his field of vision when he appeared again and strengthen his frontal defense.

_Nikou, second attack_

But just as the ninja was going to send another wave of feather toward Minato, he felt a presence behind him.

"Kaze Tsurugi no jutsu!" (4)

Naruto violently attacked the weakened barrier with his katana. The thief was taken by surprise and tried to reinforce his shield as quickly as he could. But the blade had already pierced too deeply through his defense and Naruto managed to reach his arm before being pushed back by the feathers of the Kujaku (peacock). The thief had involuntarily dropped the star but it was still on his side of the barrier.

The purple bursts of chakra forced Naruto to move back but he stayed in front of the masked shinobi. Disorientated but still standing, the ninja realized the brown haired jounin was gone just one second too late.

Sankou, third attack

Minato appeared above the ninja, several forming Rasengan in his palms. "Bakugan no jutsu!" (5) Yondaime threw the small orbs before using his Hiraishin to teleport himself. The Rasengan created dazzling explosions when they touched the ground.

The shinobi quickly protected his body by shrinking his shield to concentrate his chakra. But because of the whirling waves of energy, he didn't realize that the star was now outside. Two flashes later, Naruto had picked up the violet meteorite.

"Good job Naruto." Yondaime congratulated him.

Akahoshi (aka the drag) rushed besides them so quickly you would have thought he also mastered the Hiraishin. He almost tear the star out of Naruto's hands. "Give it to me!" Minato frowned but still motioned his son to give him the stone. However, as short as this interruption had been, it had provided enough time for the thief. The three shinobi didn't expect him to get up so quickly and were taken by aback when he gathered again his chakra.

"Kujaku Myohô: Yoku! » (6)

Four violet wings appeared on the thief's back and he immediately jumped in the poisonous canyon behind him. Yondaime and Naruto couldn't use the Hiraishin in the ravine so they tied to follow him by foot but much to their surprise, they were stopped by Akahoshi.

"Let him go."

"He isn't seriously wounded; if you let him escape he will come back soon." Minato argued, wondering where this sudden change of mind came from.

"He won't come again. " Akahoshi replied, smirking. "I'll make sure of that."

"But-"

"You're paid to protect our star, not to catch a pathetic thief."

Arashi was getting more and more suspicious but he stayed silent for now. A direct attack didn't always give the best results. "As you wish." He called Naruto and the two ninjas were ready to walk back to the village when Akahoshi came again across their way. He was looking at the blond ninja, blissfully ignorant that the boy was on the verge of killing him for being so disrespectful in front of Yondaime.

"This kid… he's far above the level of genin." Akahoshi began. "A mere ninja student couldn't possibly be powerful and wouldn't have been able to face that thief. Who are you really?"

Minato's hand rested on the shoulder of his son, firm but soothing. "We are paid to guard the star, not to answer your questions."

The two adult ninjas started a glaring contest above Naruto's head. Defiance and suspicion had filled Akahoshi's grey eyes whereas the cerulean blue irises of Minato were shining with determination and assurance. The ninja of the star finally looked away, frowning.

"Let's go back to the village." He said before taking off into the trees.

Minato sighed. He wanted to have good relations with the other villages, especially the ones than employed them, but sometimes it was almost an impossible mission. Diplomat was such a hard job…

"Let's go Naruto."

The two ninjas went back to the village and Arashi used those few peaceful moments –relatively peaceful- to review their fight. He was quite proud of their team work. They had often trained together and created a few combinations of techniques. The one they had just used was one the bests.

Sanbai Kyougeki: the triple attack coming from both sides.

It was based on the speed of the Hiraishin to confuse the enemy and force him to focus on only one target. If he chose Naruto, Minato would attack and if he chose Minato, Naruto would take over. Then the first blow, the senbons rain, was made to distract the opponent and wound him if possible. It was also a feint to hide the presence of the second attacker.

The second blow was made to break a kekkai (barrier) and to hit the enemy before finishing him off with the third blow: Bakugan. Minato had got his inspiration from Naruto when he was making his Rasengan blow up during his training. Smaller orbs, more energetic and less stable. Real bombs.

It was the first time they used the Sanbai Kyougeki in a real fight and it had been a total success.

On the way, they retrieved Sumaru who was slowly waking up. Yondaime carried him on his back and a few minutes after Akahoshi, they were back in the village. While answering the genin's questions, Naruto and his father were walking toward the sanctuary where their teams were still waiting. Minato hadn't forgotten the strange behavior of his son but he thought he would have time to talk with him later.

"Sensei!"

Sakura ran to them as they arrived but strangely, she stopped a few meters away, her emerald eyes filled with confusion at the sight of her blond team mate.

"U.. Uzumaki-kun?"

Naruto started to understand why she looked so surprised when he saw Sasuke step out of the sanctuary. "Why the hell are you here?" He asked in a disbelieving voice. He was looking back and forth between Naruto, the former anbu and Naruto, the Kage Bunshin.

…

_Oops_

°-°-° Later this evening °-°-°

The sun had just disappeared behind the mountains of the Star country, leaving the valley of the sanctuary fall in the dark. The young genins, Akahoshi as well as the Konoha team were in one of the common room of the second floor. The star was just under them, guarded three of the best genins and two jounins from the village: Shisô and Yotaka.

Akahoshi was vouching for them but although he didn't say it out loud, Minato honestly doubted the efficiency of this weird team. A brown haired guy with sneaky face framed by a bowl cut and a bald whale (according to Sakura) to protect the star, it wasn't very reassuring. They were probably playing cards right now…

Minato's gaze went over the room and he sighed. Maybe he should just join them. During the evening, the atmosphere had gone from sullen and tensed to desperately unbearable.

Sasuke was sitting at his right, glaring daggers at Naruto for being left out of the battle while the blond ninja was fighting. Besides him Sakura was also giving Naruto dark looks and Akahoshi too for good measure. She wasn't really mad for missing the action but as long as she could support her dear darling… As for Sumaru, he was sulking on the other side of the table. Being knocked out two times in one day had not brightened up his mood. And as it wasn't already enough, Naruto was glaring darkly at Akahoshi, only waiting an insult toward Yondaime to go for the jugular.

Minato could have forgiven that, they were still children after all. But to think that Akahoshi himself would glare at him during the whole evening! It was really too ridiculous.

Diner finished, the shinobi continued their conversation about the protection of their star. Akahoshi had refused Minato's help at first, saying that the thief wouldn't come back or that he would be able to dissuade him from now. But Arashi's arguments were slowly weakening his resolve.

"… … … And we could keep watch around the village for a few more days. It would prevent the thief from coming back immediately and it would give you more time to reinforce the security." Arashi explained while observing his interlocutor. Good, he was starting to hesitate.

"Of course, but.. how long would it take? We are a small village and we couldn't pay you more than what we planned."

Minato had to stop himself from rolling his eyes. That was all he could come up, money problems? Too easy. "I understand very well. But rest assured, we are not asking for a greater compensation. Konoha only wishes to improve the relationships between the Fire Country and Hoshi no Kuni. And with your accord, I could use this time to train your genins while you take care of the star."

Akahoshi slowly nodded, mentally debating over his arguments. But Minato was sure he would accept. The offer was too good to be true and the genin wouldn't understand if he refused.

"Very well, I agree." Akahoshi finally said. "Strengthen the alliance will benefit our countries."

"_Sure, besides it's not like you're doing anything…_" Minato kept his thoughts to himself and their discussion ended on a more polite tone.

On the other side, the genins of the leaf had followed this exchange with confusion. They weren't really sure about their sensei's motivations. Help to reinforce diplomatic relations was one thing but what Arashi offered was close to voluntary work. Naruto was the most confused between the three. He really didn't understand why his father insisted so much to continue the mission. Orders were to bring back the star, nothing more and they should have already been on the road back to Konoha.

But he got the opportunity to talk alone with him a few moments later. Akahoshi had left the valley for the village, bringing Sumaru with him. Sakura and Hokuto were watching over Mizura in the room next door while Sasuke and the other genins were guarding the star downstairs.

"Naruto? Come, I wanted to talk with you." Minato released his jutsu and reverted back to his normal appearance. Seeing his son standing straight, his face dead serious made him smile. "Relax, I'm not going to scold you."

"Haï." His smile froze. It wasn't an answer and it did nothing to ease his worries. Yondaime leaned against the wall, crossing his arms. "You didn't talk much today, and yesterday too… Are you okay?"

"Yes."

"Are you sure? I've got the feeling that something has changed since we left Konoha." His son seemed to be hesitating and he sat next to him. "You know you can tell me Naruto."

"Well… it's about the mission."

Yondaime nodded, thinking he understood what he meant. "Ah, so you noticed it too? This man, Akahoshi, he's too suspicious. He calls us to protect his star and when we finally fight and beat the thief he lets him run away and he wants us to leave. I wanted to ask Sumaru a few things but he left." He admitted. "And I still don't know why Akahoshi took him by the way. He had no reason to do that since Sumaru already reported to him. I'm sure he's preparing something. I sent Konoha a message to ask them some information but I hope I'll discover as much as I can here."

Naruto could see where Yondaime was going but he didn't think they were still talking about the same thing. "Hm, it's not what I meant."

"Eh? You saw something else?"

"No, no, I'm wondering why we're not going back to Konoha."

Minato raised an eyebrow, surprised. "You already want to go back? It's only been two days."

"No, I mean... Well.." The former anbu didn't knwo how to explain without opposing him. "Why are we continuing the mission?" He finally asked. "We protected the star against the thief and Akahoshi was sure he didn't need us anymore. I don't understand why we should still investigate on him."

"I thought you had noticed he acted in a strange way."

"Of course, but I don't see how it concerns us since our mission is over."

Minato didn't like the new turn of this conversation. "Yes, in theory it's over but you don't think I'm going to leave now, do you?"

The young ninja didn't answer but his silence clearly betrayed his incomprehension. Minato could almost read on his lips the question he didn't dare to ask. 'Why not?'

"Naruto. You saw how he acted with his ninjas. They were hurt, unconscious and the only thing he was thinking about was that star. Mizura couldn't stop coughing during the whole evening and the only thing he did was to glare at him!" Yondaime felt again indignation rise in him. "His genins are even afraid to look at him and he doesn't do a damn thing to make them feel better. That's not the behavior of a real Kage, you should know that!"

"He's the leader of this village, his shinobi must show him respect and obedience."

Minato paled terribly at those words and couldn't find his voice in front of those blood red eyes. He wanted to protest, get angry at Naruto, beg him not to speak like that and even to think that way but no sound crossed the barrier of his lips. The two blond ninjas remained silent for a few moments which seemed like an eternity for Minato. He finally found the strength to move forward and put his hands on his shoulders.

"Naruto… What happened to you?" he asked, his voice shaking slightly. "I know that's how you were raised but I thought you understood the Council just wanted to use you. Yes, shinobis are trained to fight and kill, but it doesn't mean they have to become machines!" Minato didn't want to shout but he couldn't help it. All the anger and the frustration he had bottled up those past months were rushing back, pouring in his words and mixed with worry and incomprehension. "Ninjas must obey their superiors, it's true, but those orders aren't always absolute. You have a heart and an independent mind, you can judge by yourself. No, you have to judge by yourself. Even outside the mission, a leader can be mistaken and take the wrong way. There're some choices you have to do by yourself, you can't follow blindly the orders forever!"

He had almost shouted those last words and they were followed by a deep silence. Although his hands were shaking a little, he was looking at his son straight in the eyes. Blood red orbs where the utmost confusion could be seen.

"But… It's.. it's not…"

Naruto didn't know what to believe anymore. He knew he had to obey the Hokage's orders without asking questions but what was he supposed to do when he was given the opposite orders? Since the day Minato came back from the dead, he had taught him many things and not just techniques or jutsus but also a whole new lifestyle. Gone were the dangerous and deadly mission assignments as well as the never ending training sessions with the Anbu units. Naruto wasn't the one who asked for that but he had accepted it without protesting. First because it was his father's wish and also because it had interested and, he admitted it, often amused him.

Since the previous day, he was beginning to see how wrong this second reason was. He couldn't understand why he had allow himself to waste his time with those kids from the Academy, speak openly with a Sannin without permission, letting himself be overpower by that strange voice who could be an enemy, share important secrets with a genin of Kaze he didn't even know…

That last thought made Naruto hesitate but he quickly crushed his doubts. He made the mistake of forgetting who he was, a former anbu and a shinobi of the leaf above all. He wouldn't repeat the same mistake twice.

Humans can sometimes guess what another person is feeling, but without jutsu, it's impossible to know exactly what the other is thinking. And this is fortunate because if Minato had heard the thoughts of his son at this moment, he would probably abandon all hope. Instead, he only saw his red eyes lose their confuse gleam and his young face being darken once more by the cold and indifferent mask he feared so much.

"Only the Hokage and the Council have the right to decide, I can't-"

"No Naruto!" Minato cried out although his determination was slowly fading away. "I will not accept that! You're a ninja, not a tool that can be used by those damn counselors! You must open your eyes!"

"But I-" Naruto seemed to change his mind at the last moment. His gaze was filled with a resolve equal to his father and he looked straight at him. "Is it an order?"

Minato's hand jerked back and he stepped back, as if he had been hit. But this blow was much more painful because it didn't only inflict him an almost physical pain but it also burned what was left of his resolve. He stared at Naruto in silence, almost with horror. The horror to see his only and beloved son walk again away from him.

In front of him, Naruto was getting slightly alarmed by his lack of reaction and he took a step forward. "Hokage-sama?"

"ENOUGH! DON'T CALL ME LIKE THAT!" Minato yelled. He moved back again and found himself against the wall. The shout had drained his last forces and he rested a shaking hand on his forehead, hiding his eyes. "Enough… please." He said quietly. "Go find Sakura, Sasuke, guard the star or do whatever you want."

A short silence took place between them and since his father wasn't saying anything else, the young boy finally turned away. "As you wish."

When Minato heard the door close, he sat down on the floor, tears of despair running silently on his cheeks. For the first time, he cursed the day he chose to become a shinobi. Being able to sense Naruto's presence just behind the door, probably keep watch there, seemed like the height of injustice right now and he couldn't bring himself to face him.

The hours passed slowly and standing just a few meters away from the other, neither of the blond ninjas managed to sleep this night.

TBC…

* * *

(1) Kujaku Myohô, Kemono: Mysterious Technique of the Peacock, Beast

(2) Kujaku Myohô, Zan: Mysterious Technique of the Peacock, Destruction

(3) Kaze Tsurugi no Jutsu: Blade Wind

(4) Bakugan: Explosive Orbs (baku = explosion, gan = round, circle, comes from Rasengan)

(5) Kujaku Myohô, Yoku: Mysterious Technique blah blah blah… you get it, yoku = wings.

Hope you enjoyed the chap!

Well, enjoy is maybe a big word.. the last part was bit sad. I was rereading old romantic classics when I wrote this scene so I got a bit carried away with the tragedy, he he  
Don't be too hard on Naruto, he's a bit harsh with his dad but it's not like it's- ... oops, I shouldn't tell you anything. you'll understand everything in the next chapter.

Tell me what you think!

See ya.


	12. Fic adoption

Hi guys,

I'm sorry that's not a another chapter, but it's still good news.

This fic will be adopted by **Robertz**, so check her/his profile for the next updates!

Maybe I'll also co-write it, since I had a few things planned ahead.

Anyway, thanks for your support until now, you were great!

(btw, .Alpha, thanks for reminding me ;)

Bye


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